The IG Statement: Massacre in Mautu but we must Resist

Yesterday, 10 January 2021, despicable barbarism was unleashed by the occupying forces upon our people in the village of Mautu, Fako County. The village of Mautu was invaded and ten men, women, and children were slaughtered as they went about their daily activities. Just two days ago, a young man called Clovis in the village of Njinikom was murdered by the French Cameroun forces.  Our hearts bleed and our nation mourns the victims of these heinous crimes. They will never be forgotten.

The Interim Government of Ambazonia (The IG) has ordered an immediate investigation to ascertain the facts surrounding these massacres. As the facts are made available, The IG will be communicating these details to its international partners and human rights groups.

Unfortunately, these savage and unprovoked attacks perpetrated by French Cameroun’s BIR, in collaboration with other militias, on our innocent and defenceless civilian population has become endemic. We have irrefutable evidence that these crimes against humanity are premeditated and directed by leaders of the regime in Yaoundé. Make no mistake, these are not random attacks. These attacks are carried out with military precision. These attacks are designed to terrorize the civilian population and to deter prospective enlistment of self-defence forces.  These attacks are also designed to evoke retaliation, but we shall not succumb to provocation or fear.  We shall respond to these attacks at the appropriate time.

As a nation, the courage and resilience of our restoration forces to fight for our sovereignty is commendable. The time just before dawn is habitually the darkest moment. Throughout history, many involved in restoration movements have despaired and almost given up when times are challenging. But history teaches us that with persistence, many nations have won their liberation battles and, I believe that if we persist, we shall overcome. I believe that with perseverance, the actualization of the restoration of Ambazonia shall come to pass.

To the population of Buea, we are proud that many businesses remain closed during Ghost-towns. For the few shops that are now opening on these days, we are appealing that you observe this great initiative that has given our struggle great momentum. This war was declared on us and it is our responsibility to protect ourselves and our territory from the invading and lawless military of French Cameroun. No violent conflict ever ends in the battlefield. Wars always end on the negotiation table as the only place where sustainable peace and justice can be attained. French Cameroun shall come to this realisation soon.

The Interim Government of Ambazonia is hereby making an urgent call for Ambazonians to take the following dispositions

1. We all need to be strategic in our actions, pronouncement and must speak about our struggle as one to the world.
2. We must all work as intelligence-gathering officers for our restoration forces so that those within our communities who collaborate with these thugs from French Cameroun to discredit our revolution are brought to justice.
3. We must disregard mentors of internal division and stand together in our innovative and dynamic plan to ruthlessly adhere to our Responsibility to Protect (R2P) Ambazonia.
4. We need to be bold and resolute in taking our territory through OPERATION CAPHOT aka THE BIG RUBBERGUN.

Fellow Comrades, be neither discouraged nor distracted. Our time shall come. Our policy position is that the following confidence-building measures would create a conducive atmosphere for productive engagement with French Cameroun. We believe that the entire process would have to be underwritten by the UN and certain muscular States (America, Britain, Germany, and Russia). The key confidence-building measures that must be taken are:

(i)            A UN humanitarian intervention in the Southern Cameroons. This necessary action will secure the safety of the people of the Southern Cameroons. French Cameroun forces must withdraw from the territory of the Southern Cameroons. Our IDPs, refugees and diaspora community must be able to return safely to the Southern Cameroons without fear of being killed by the regime in Yaoundé.

(ii)           The release of all Southern Cameroons political prisoners being held by French Cameroun in various prisons and torture facilities.

(iii)          An international fact-finding mission to investigate various crimes perpetrated in the Southern Cameroons.

For us, the adoption of these measures is critical for obvious reasons. French Cameroun has proven to be dishonest. It is a nation that has no respect for human lives and international norms. But we must continue our fight for freedom and justice with the believe that we shall overcome. We must remain bold and not succumb to intimidation or fear. We must keep resisting. We shall overcome.

God bless the Federal Republic of Ambazonia.

Thank You

Dabney Yerima

Vice President