Cameroon: Escalation of the Anglophone crisis

Parliamentary and municipal elections scheduled for February 9 2020 are intensifying an escalation of the Anglophone crisis in Cameroon. On 7 January 2020, fighters from the Ambazonian separatist group burned down the Elections Cameroon (ELECAM) office in Misaje commune, Donga Mantung division in Northwest region. The action was to reiterate their earlier decision not to participate in legislative and municipal council elections scheduled for 9 February 2020. The Ambazonian Governing Council (AGovC) have stated that campaigning and talking about the elections by the populace in the proclaimed Ambazonia region is criminal. The decision not to participate in the elections and the subsequent attack have heightened tensions in the Northwest and Southwest regions, increasing protection and displacement risks for people living in these regions.