Cameroon's President Paul Biya halted on Midweek the lawsuit of leaders of the nation's English-speaking community who stand upwardly defendant of terror-related charges over their cause out for Anglophone rights inwards the French-majority nation.
The leaders -- lawyer Felix Agbor Nkongho, instructor Neba Fontem Aforteka'a too Paul Ayah Abine -- were expected to endure released soon, 1 of their lawyers said.
They are amid roughly thirty activists beingness prosecuted on charges that include terrorism equally good equally rebellion, too which are punishable past times death.
Biya's decision, which was announced on soil radio, was seen equally an attempt to calm tensions inwards the crisis over Anglophone rights inwards the cardinal African nation of 22 million.
The men were arrested inwards Jan afterward the Anglophone Civil Society Consortium led past times Nkongho too Aforteka'a called a smasher to promote the rights of the English-speaking minority, which accounts for almost xx per centum of the population.
The crisis was triggered past times a smasher past times lawyers demanding that the anglophone regions purpose Anglo-Saxon mutual constabulary equally their judicial benchmark. Teachers too hence went on strike.
Biya's decree did non holler past times holler 1 of the movement's jailed leaders, the broadcaster Mancho Bibixy, leaving his fate uncertain for the moment.
'Not fundamentally resolve conflict'
Protests inwards the ii primary English-speaking regions, inwards northwest too southwest Cameroon, convey pressed for a federal soil spell approximately secessionists convey fifty-fifty called for independence.
However, the regime took a difficult line, including the cutting off of cyberspace access for over iii months inwards the ii English-speaking regions.
The president's decree also applies to "certain other people detained over the violence inwards recent months".
"The procedure of freeing them is nether way, merely I strongly dubiety that it volition endure tonight," Claude Assira, a fellow member of the leaders' legal team, said on Wednesday.
Biya's determination came without much alarm too equally the province of affairs appeared at a stalemate betwixt unyielding authorities too strikes inwards the anglo areas that convey wrought havoc.
"This is a determination that was made to calm the situation, merely from my signal of sentiment volition non fundamentally resolve the conflict," said Mathias Eric Owona Nguini, a politics professor at Yaounde-II University.
"Once the English-speaking leaders are released, volition they starting fourth dimension agreeing alongside the regime?" he asked.
The English-speaking minority tin endure traced dorsum to Cameroon's unique history. At the halt of World War II the onetime High German colony was handed to French Republic too United Kingdom of Great Britain too Northern Ireland to run.
The dual communities are a legacy of the unification inwards 1961 of ii colonial-era entities previously run past times French Republic too Britain.
An exporter of petroleum that is rich inwards timber too agriculture, Republic of Cameroon is amid the most prosperous economies on the continent.
But the anglophone minority has long complained that wealth has non been shared fairly, too that they convey suffered discrimination.
AFP