Cameroon Peace Process Receives International Support

The African Union (AU), the Commonwealth, and La Francophonie, have all pledged their support for the peace process in Cameroon, as the country looks to quell separatist tensions in its Anglophone regions.

AU Commission Chairman Moussa Faki, Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland, and La Francophonie Secretary-General Louise Mushikiwabo, arrived in Cameroon’s capital Yaoundé, to meet with President Paul Biya.

Baroness Scotland, a British Labour party peer, said “We are determined to do all we can as three organisations to support peaceful process and we are encouraging everyone to put peace and good governance first.

“We have been clear that there have been problems and concerns and we have had that very clearly outlined.

“The main responsibility to will rest on Cameroonians themselves; we want peaceful coalition and existence”, she added.

The three went on to meet leaders from civil society following talks with the President, including with opposition leaders.

The conflict has so far claimed over 3,000 lives in the three years since protests by lawyers sparked ethnic clashes, and over half a million people have been displaced from their homes, according to International Crisis Group.

The United Nations has said the conflict has created a humanitarian emergency for nearly two million people.