Author: Diahr Dotem

Ambazonian collaboration…the paradoxes.

Ambazonian Flag

For a long time Ambazonia News has advocated collaboration as the way to speed up the Ambazonian Liberation Struggle. That is still true but it now seems a few questions would not be amiss.

It has come to the attention of Amazonia News that the Canadian Pre-talks Facilitation, and before that, the Swiss Process, has succumbed to La Republique du Cameroun’s preference to “solve” the Amazonian Liberation Struggle through the implementation of their “GDN resolutions”.

AAAC1 Aarschot 2023 towards collaboration

In conjunction with La Republique du Cameroun’s announcement dismissing Canada as would-be mediators the forgoing preference would militate against the current clamour for “collaboration” in the Ambazonian stakeholders ranks, especially with the avowed objective of “preparing for negotiation” or a “referendum”. Neither of these are about to happen given La Republique du Cameroun’s stance and maybe the stakeholders doing the rounds to promote conferences should expound on their logic and apparent optimism. Are there any secret signs that the suspected distraction, not to say misuse of resources, of such conferences would suddenly bring La Republique to the table? At Ambazonia News we suspect a little stroking by the International Community has proved enough flattery for some Ambazonian leaders. We would be first to admit to being mistaken but logic points nothing else.

Now the questions to address:

Who is the collaboration for?

What is the collaboration for?

Who wants or benefits from collaboration?

Do we know what collaboration is?

Ambazonia News cannot presume to answer the question? These, and many other questions, must be pondered by stakeholders as a way to refine the process and to ensure it works for the purpose and is adapted and adaptable to dribble some of the fringe.

The fringe would be the “unionist” “Ambazonian”. A paradox if ever one existed. Some well-meaning and valid stakeholders have “explained” that the stalled Canadian process involved a “commitment to bring in all Ambazonians including, unionists, federalists and independentists”, Ambazonia News extrapolates, “to prove to the international community how inclusive our Liberation Struggle is”. For the purpose of avoiding blame, Ambazonia News is not naming any of the stakeholders who seek to promote that level of “inclusiveness”. Ambazonia News does not see any malice in those pronouncements but rather a certain naive fall to the simple flattery if being addressed by the international community. Instead Ambazonia News simply calls on all stakeholders to consider the role of the “unionist fringe” that would be invited to “contribute” to the “All Ambazonian Conference” for Ambazonia News fears they would be defending, not to say promoting, La Republique du Cameroun’s position as they (LRC) might, say in a negotiation.

That would leave Ambazonian stakeholders “negotiating” even before LRC has agreed to negotiate and possibly making concessions to LRC in their absence! Given that LRC has distanced themselves from any negotiation process should Ambazonia be “negotiating” and entertaining people we might call “enablers and blacklegs”? Do we need to desperately “prove” our “inclusiveness”? Is that how we got to a state where LRC deemed necessary to tentatively come to the table? Do we actually think that?

Ambazonia News is of the view that that came about as a result of the hostility LRC faced rather than the international community realising our “inclusiveness”.

Are “unionists” “Ambazonian”? No. In a sense this is a non-issue as it would be really odd and incongruous for anyone who professes “unionism” to figure in an All-Ambazonian Conference. The bigger deal is that this clamour is yet another potential distraction that could lessen the momentum of the Liberation Struggle, to the advantage of LRC. Of course there are a number of high profile figures with the dry-eye to unfurl their carpet bags at AAC if we keep pounding the idea of such inclusivity especially if these figures think we are seeking to impress the international partners. Some have been to Swiss … As this op-ed is committed one outing, more on which later, by Dr Munzu, is doing the rounds as if to make the point of this post.

Ambazonia News would not see the “AAC” clamour as the right collaboration for it would not work for Ambazonia, even if it “works” for the “international community”.

Instead the collaboration that would survive and not succumb to illogic of the “inclusive” collaboration would be the collaboration of independentists. It is self evident what makes any stakeholder an independentist. While this might not necessarily “work” for the international community, we should not be so sure that it wouldn’t. Logic says that that is actually what moved the international partners who have so far been moved to break cover and approach LRC even in the timid steps. Those approaches would not have accrued any outcomes had LRC not also experienced the “hostile” environment that a collaboration of independentists would only intensify.

There has also been talk of referendum. Ambazonia News presumes, even understands, that the idea is that the international community would come in and organise such a referendum. Would they (the international community) be able to impose it if LRC refused? Under what conditions would such a referendum be “imposable”? Would an “inclusive” Ambazonian Conference including the fringes induce LRC to yield? Would it persuade the international community to impose a referendum – and impose it if need be? Have they shown any prior willingness to put themselves out to bat for Ambazonia without the discomfort of LRC?

Ambazonia News invites all our groups to consider these questions before they are carry away with the nudges of the international community who may be utterly ambivalent when it comes to the outcome. In fact their implication will often be on condition of neutrality and that belies any belief that the international community is about to come to Ambazonia’s rescue.

Ambazonia News will continue to rely on the Watchman of Nation who has navigated the most improbable tight corners on our behalf even when our own mistakes have threatened. He will guide collaboration when we the time is right and who knows? Maybe this is the time and the clamour to “prepare for negotiation or a referendum” will lead to the real logical collaboration “by mistake”!

Ambazonia: the journey contnues

It is that time of year again. Though it can now be taken for granted that our people shun La Republique du Cameroun’s annual charade, it is still upsetting and annoying to see them and their enablers try to make-believe by trampling the graves of our hero and innocent victims.

Would the Ngarbuh families forgive us?

Would baby Martha forgive us?

Would all the women and children enduring hardship in the bushes forgive us?

Would our captive abductees in La Republique du Cameroun jails forgive us?

Once again we must make our objection unambiguous and unmistakable in words and deeds.

Join the IG to sponsor the your Liberation struggle.

The Most High God is our Watchman.

All-Ambazonia Activists’ Conference Resolutions

Ambazonian Flag

Ambazonian Activists gathered in Belgium, resolved to foster collaboration among Ambazonian Independentists in particular and stakeholders in general, all aimed at achieving a swift attainment of independence for Ambazonia. This was done on April 29th 2023 in Aarschot near Brussels. The previous day the Activists had petitioned international partners such as the EU on behalf of Ambazonia.

In an apt demonstration they showed, using a sketch, how communication could help progress the Ambazonian Liberation Struggle and wrest the information war from the grasp of the enemy.

They scored high immediately on the objective of fostering collaboration by not only attracting the attendance of several movements but getting them to share face to face contact, table, food and drink and a dance.

The Ambazonian Liberation is God-ordained.

Read the resolutions here:

Page 1

Page 2

Page 3

IG’s ACTION AND ACCOUNTABILITY POLICY

Read or download the policy document from https://federalrepublicofambazoniagov.org/newsroom/documents/igs-aa-policy-2

IG President Marianta Njomia has reiterated her popular and successful policy on the prosecution of the Ambazonian Liberation Struggle. It outlines a simple ratio for distributing funds raised by Ambazonian citizens and ensures that Action occurs proportional to the resources while seeking to support our refugees, prisoners and so-called internally displaced victims using a fixed proportion of resources.

The proportion of resources assigned to IG officials or any other diasporan leader of the Ambazonian Liberation Struggle is 0%. The rationale is that we of the diaspora must sacrifice materially and financially to complement the higher sacrifice of the Restoration Forces and the civilians on the ground.

Celebrate or dread … the advent of Ambazonian collaboration?

Ambazonian Flag

The recent buzz, not to say dernier cri is the feverish preparation of various incarnations of an “All Ambazonian Conference” AAC. It would appear that the confusion that would have arisen from calling such a gathering “AAC” had not initially been apparent to the various “convenors”. The subject of convenors is big in itself, but more later, time permitting.


A little before this became really big and the thing, Ambazonia News discussed the concept of the All Ambazonia bit of the conference, raising questions on who the participants should be and why/how it could impact the conference and the larger Liberation struggle.


On the subject of Collaboration, which would clearly accrue from a conference of this sort, Ambazonia News has always advocated and once sketched the various combinations of collaboration that could foster and expedite the Liberation struggle. These reminders should be borne in mind when the next few questions and analysis/suggestions are considered. We must bear in mind also that nothing is linear in terms of cause and effect maybe apart, almost uniquely from the idea that if the Liberation Struggle loses momentum then LRC does not need to negotiate no matter how well attended and united an All Ambazonian Conference presents.


Ambazonian News Celebrates Collaboration … but


At Ambazonia News, having extolled collaboration, it would be odd to suddenly object. Collaboration will ensure that Ambazonia wins on the ground more quickly regardless of the machinations of international partners. This winning collaboration is in ensuring that all our restoration forces act in a coordinated fashion and back each other up at all times, regardless of what political faction backs them. As per a previous post by Ambazonia News, this collaboration should be through the local autonomy of the forces in realising that their literal survival relies on the support and trust of all their neighbouring restoration forces. They should be able to trust that LRC forces will not cross Ambazonian counties unchallenged to surprise any other Ambazonian county. At the very least there should be no surprises when it comes to the movements and locations of LRC militias in Ambazonia and so no restoration forces should be surprise victims of any LRC ambushes.

At this moment, the movement on organising political conferences needs to have zero influence on the ground collaboration which should always remain on the “life-and-death-trust” level sketched here as in previous posts.
Ambazonia News would celebrate and promote any “AAC” which enhances the ground collaboration thus. The danger Ambazonia News would watch for is the “AAC for negotiation”.


This is where many “leaders” are deliberately posturing to be in the limelight for the sole purpose of being at a negotiating table with LRC. At best, this would be a pipe dream as LRC has formally dismissed any intention to attend any negotiations and cannot be made so to do by any international partners no matter how well-meaning. They may apply some sanctions or organise mentoring sessions with some Ambazonian stakeholders but those have no benefit in terms of progress towards Ambazonian Independence even if the flattery is irresistible! Those international partner mentors will melt into the ether if the momentum of the Liberation Struggle dissipates as LRC hopes.

The only good thing that mentoring and facilitation from international partners could/should be that the beneficiaries are so used to the flattery and so enjoy it that they realise why they are getting it … at least in part. This attention and flattery is due to the resilience and persistence of the ground forces, hence the assurance of this new importance status with the international partners relies on maintaining/improving ground success! That should be the virtuous circle.
The risk is that the international partners create a sandbox for the Ambazonian political leaders where the latter can “safely” indulge in grandiose posturing while neglecting the ground to LRC’s benefit – ultimately leading to a situation where LRC, having already dismissed negotiations does not feel compelled. Ambazonia News posted previously quoting certain leaders declaring that LRC would be dragged to the negotiation table. Our hope at Ambazonia News is that some of those leaders do not see the sandbox they are in as a start of negotiations – LRC has dismissed negotiations AND the international community does not have the Ambazonian interests at heart and nor should they! What is their interest in Ambazonia? What is the mutuality?
And what about the projected and already unfolding chaos in LRC? Wont it benefit Ambazonia? If and only if the there is the level of collaboration between the RF sketched above -and more! BUW have already been calling for other county RF to “draw” some of the LRC fire much along the lines of the collaboration sketched here!

The convenors who are they?

The Convenors should be the main players and beneficiaries of the Conference. They should be the people of Ambazonia exactly like it should have been the people of The Former UN Trust Territory of British Southern Cameroons who voted in 1961, having decided whether independence was or was not for them at the time. Just like then, a litany of mentors does not know better and while they can be mentors they cannot decide the time or timing, the agenda, the attendance or composition of the “All Ambazonian Conference”. The mentors’ mentoring should only be mentoring and no nudges or pressure to promote any timetable or agenda which could act against Ambazonian interests. The people of Ambazonia should. By definition Ambazonians are independentists. Independentists entities should represent the people who have, over the last seven years chosen independence by voluntarily abstaining from LRC activities, abstained from voting in LRC, started their community education to help them break LRC colonialism.

In conclusion collaboration in political circles can only benefit Ambazonian Independence if it leads to more collaboration among RFs on the ground leading to more victories on the ground. This first outcome would be the logical genesis of a strong negotiating position which need not actually rely on LRC’s choice to attend or not attend. In this scenario the AAC – or whatever they turn out to be called – bring together a coalition of independentists, who while ironing out political differences, still prioritise the Liberation struggle outside any sandbox. Over to our “Leaders” now to judge for themselves whether they are in a sandbox and what they will achieve from a “conference”.

The Most High God remains the Watchman of Ambazonia despite our mistakes. Let us choose the right collaboration. Ground Zero is not a sandbox

IG Calls on International Institutions to do job on LRC abductions of Ambazonians

Ambazonian Flag

The IG has cited the 4th Geneva Convention on the protection of civilians in armed conflict in calling on international institutions to assume their responsibilities in the face of continued war crimes and genocidal acts by the military of La République du Cameroun.

The statement comes in the wake of recent mass abductions in Bali Nyonga on the 8th of March (International Women’s day), where the abductees included an 85 year old grand-mother on her way to church, and forty others. A week earlier a similar number had been rounded up in Matoh in Meme county on 2nd of March 2023.

These acts must impact the upcoming All Ambazonian Conference, AAC, being prepared by Ambazonian leaders.

Read the full statement from the IG web site or download it here.

AAC? 1961 mark 2?

Ambazonian Flag

It is old news now that La Republique du Cameroun has “rejected” the Canadian-Facilitated Process which was meant to be the product if the pretalks.

Since the “shocking” communiqué international partners have continued to “help” Ambazonian stakeholders to pursue other avenues for a “solution” in the Ambazonian Liberation Struggle. One such avenue is the organisation of the “All Ambazonian Conference”, AAC (not) to be confused with the two previous namesakes?

As these lines are committed actions are underway to “ensure a broad participation” in order to show the international partners that the  Ambazonia Liberation Struggle is universally supported among Ambazonians. Surely a tautology! Well, only if those international partners and the Ambazonian stakeholders were on the same page, and they are not!

“International partners” tend to be looking for “peace” which means the lack of active conflict or fighting. They are not generally exercised about whether that means the citizens of those peaceful places are experiencing justice or injustice. That is why La Republique du Cameroun is able to commit the acts they have over the last few decades, and more intensely, the last six years, in Ambazonia and still be tolerated. Our international partners would love nothing more than for what La Republique calls “normalcy” to return to Ambazonia! Ambazonian stakeholders and leaders need to be aware that, putting it bluntly, most international partners may not be on the same page when it comes to the desire and insistence on the justice part of the issue. No matter how helpful, they are more than likely to be constantly nudging Ambazonians away from total independence. To them it is just a job and a feather in their current functionary’s cap if they achieve peace, even temporary peace. Ambazonian leaders need to deal with the issues from their own interest and avoid trying to attain thresholds set by those partners especially when La Republique is not being required to do anything. In the run up to the 1961 plebiscite the UK representative at the UN objected to the option of independence for Southern Cameroons though the UK remained prepared to present the façade of neutrality “in letting the people of Southern Cameroons decide their own fate.”

To their ends, various international partners have been helping a select few Ambazonian leaders to assimilate the idea that Ambazonia needs to impress the international community! This is where the “wide participation” being touted for the AAC is a dangerous problem to solve. On the face of it, it would indeed provide the evidence so that Ambazonia can call out the international community’s continued tolerance of La Republique du Cameroun’s stance. The questions remain: then what? What if they do and what if the international community condemns La Republique du Cameroun? What if La Republique simply ignores it and continues to play for time? Where would that take Ambazonia?

That was assuming the best for the AAC with the recommended attendance. There is worse and sadly that worse is more likely and much more in line with the international partners’ outlook. They want a broad participation to be the whole spectrum of “people born in Ambazonia” from proponents of “one Cameroon” through federalists to independentists. Though it would be a paradox for the extreme end of this spectrum to attend an All Ambazonian Conference, it is not beyond imagining that La Republique would quite like Ambazonians to be bugged down in more costly debate while they continue to kill our people as they have done through out the various “processes”.

Even if the conference went perfectly it is hard for it to be able to resolve strongly in favour of independence were the wide spectrum to participate. “Federalists” such as Munzu are on record that they were waiting for the fighting to “subside” when “the antagonists” realise they can’t win. They [federalists] would then come in as “the happy median”. One of the boasts in that outing was that Munzu was an “insider” of the workings of the international system! Would Dr Munzu be part of the wider participation? Would Balla? Would that be because they represent any constituencies or just that they have high profiles with the international community? What about the nebulous CDN? Is this the time juncture?

Does Ambazonia want to start making concessions even before any remote possibility of negotiations with La Republique du Cameroun? Should those concessions be to parties who not only have folded arms and callously ignored the crimes against humanity but, in some instances declared their willingness to wait for the opportunity before coming in to “negotiate federation”?

Maybe participants at an All Ambazonian Conference need to be Ambazonian first. This leads to the question of who an Ambazonian is. Are they simply anyone born in Ambazonia or do they need to be actively pro Ambazonian Restoration? Which of these is the most needed at this juncture in our Liberation Struggle?

Ambazonia Liberation mindset

Ambazonian Flag

As La Republique du Cameroun embarks on another contrived sham of an election we the Ambazonians are looking at having to “ban” the “elections on our territory. But do we have to? What have they got to do with us?

On the face of it we should not have to ban that exercise since it is known that La Republique du Cameroun withdrew from the flawed union and reverted to her 1960 international borders. Don’t understand? Read the Bamenda High Court ruling HCB28/92.

On that basis, Ambazonians should not be enduring the humiliation of a sham election where La Republique du Cameroun actually appoint stooges to pose as representatives of Southern Cameroons. It should be understood that this scheme of appointing stooges is the tenuous thread by which La Republique du Cameroun somehow sustains her “illegal forcible occupation” of Southern Cameroons (Ambazonia) in the eyes of the international community. They can claim that Ambazonia is represented in their government no matter how flawed that government is.

That is La Republique du Cameroun’s modus operandi along with the reasons. That is why they did appoint “senators” purportedly from the “opposition” SDF in their out-going “legislature”.  With the SDF claiming over a sustained period to be grounded in Ambazonia it suited La Republique du Cameroun to be able to point to their presence in their parliament as evidence that Ambazonia is represented and, therefore, participating and therefore less in need of self-determination. That is also why LRC is very likely to appoint SDF stooges soon afterward even if no “voting” takes place and even if they are unable to raise and SDF “winners”.

For our part, we the Ambazonians need to make it clear that any such stooge appointees do not represent our nation. We should not take part in any vacuous acts claimed as an election. That way we have the basis to demand justice from the international community for the return of nationhood as it would be clear that not only is La Republique du Cameroun the country with 1960 international borders outside of Ambazonia, but that their claim of representation is false.

What about “Ambazonian” so-called “representatives” in LRC? If they are Ambazonians they would have the precedent from history to follow – they must quit the (East Cameroon) La Republique du Cameroun “parliament” just like our forbears quit the Eastern Nigeria assembly to create self government in the United Nations Trust Territory of Southern Cameroons back then.

Many are not “Ambazonian”. Having understood the stakes if they persist in following their stomachs at the expense of Ambazonian victims of genocide then our Restoration Forces should have the mandate to arrest them or dissuade them appropriately and proportionately. Ambazonia has lost enough school children, shot by nervous occupying militias; enough pregnant women killed in deliberate “bavures”; enough homes burnt; enough youths so-called “neutralised” for being suspected fighters.

With LRC stalling on the Canada-facilitated talks, for one thing, and showing the distinct lack of “a responsible adult at home” Ambazonian stakeholders need to take heed and engage collaborative planning for “rainy days” so clearly pencilled in for La Republique du Cameroun’s near future.

When our historical leaders left Eastern Nigeria they were not a single party but they collaborated to institute a functioning multi-party democracy. Ambazonia’s confidence should flow from the knowledge that we can actually still boast more transparent transitions of power in our parliament in a few years of existence than La Republique du Cameroun has managed in a much longer time scale. We are better!

The Most High God is the Watchman of Ambazonia.

DDR a no-go Hobson’s Choice

IG president Marianta Njomia has spotlighted La Republique du Cameroun’s misuse of the so-called DDR Centres set up to purportedly “reintegrate” former fighters of the Ambazonian Restoration Forces. Evidence is that the victims of these centres are being coerced to side with the genocidal militias they were moved to volunteer to repel when first joining the ARFs.

Examples abound of disappointed “beneficiaries”, the most infamous of whom General Nambere. It is “obvious” that anyone who is targeted by these paradoxical places would have thought long and hard and concluded not only that they had no future with La Republique du Cameroun, but that they could not silently and passively witness the genocide, that, before becoming active in the ARF. Therefore it should not be an issue because nobody should turn from having resolved to join the ARF to believing that they could benefit in any way from the DDR set up by La Republique du Cameroun while their militias are still burning homes and carrying out what are extra-judicial killings if they are simultaneously peddling the idea of DDR!

Nobody should be that gullible! If they were minded to do what they claim the DDR would do, for the former ARF the war would not have started. The protests would not have started because the “marginalisation” would not have started nor gone on for so long! Failing that, they would have heeded the teachers and lawyers and “reformed” rather than resort to the violence and declaration of war!

Could they declare war and then “help” setup it’s reluctant self-defence victims as they claim DDR would? Then why not leave out the war and just respond to the petitions before the protests began … Why not, if they did not get enough time to respond to the petitions, respond more logically to the protests?

If something is illogical it cannot be true no matter how much anyone hopes or wishes it would be. The fate of many inmates of the DDR should serve as a warning to any ARF fighters.

Having once volunteered to risk it all in self defence of our nation how painful must it be to be so easily and obviously “fooled”?

As Ambazonians we continue to hold our heroes in high respect as they strive “to bear the land with their blood” in the most difficult circumstances. Even if they temporarily lose sight we appreciate their least effort and sympathise.

We the Ambazonians must continue to encourage our heroes and make sure we treasure their lives and honour and courage and dignity.

It is patently tough to sustain the effort but our fight is our dignity. It is the dignity of our heroes. It is difficult but there is no choice at this stage. There was no choice even before, and certainly not after joining the ARFs.

The Most High God is the Watchman of Ambazonia.