Religious leaders in Cameroon have called for a peaceful resolution of the Anglophone crisis.
Speaking on Friday November 27, 2020 in Buea, headquarters of South West region of Cameroon during a capacity building workshop on peaceful conflict resolution and sustainable peace, the clergies said no amount of military deployment can put an end to the Anglophone crisis rather than engaging in peaceful negotiation.
The four day workshop organized by Ecumenical Forum on the Anglophone Crisis (EFFAC) and the Council of Protestant Churches in Cameroon (CEPCA) was focused on the causes of conflicts, strategic peace building, reconciliation, tolerance and living together, violent and nonviolent action(youth) ,silencing the guns and the role of the religious leaders in fighting extremism.
Religious leaders in Cameroon have been criticized for playing a mild role in mitigating the over four year crisis in the English-speaking regions.
The Anglophone crisis in Cameroon is growing deadlier. The church could mediate between Anglophone militants and the state, but clergy have espoused clashing views on key issues. Many are those who hold that church should bridge its divides and state its impartiality on the thorniest question facing Anglophone regions – federalism versus decentralization. A clergy able to project a position of neutrality could work with other trusted actors to mediate between Anglophone leaders and the state, and stem a dangerous and growing crisis.
