NEW UPDATE - Students at the University of Buea (Ambazonia) on Strike / Call for Solidarity

Update from Ambazonia Students Association (ASA) University of Buea, on the
recent developments on the issues of the strike and the killing of unarmed
students in cold blood at the scene by French Cameroon cobs.
'
Ladies and Gentlemen; since our appeal to you for solidarity with us in the face
of the brutal killings of our mates by the annexation regime of French
Cameroon, certain developments have taken place on the ground. As soon as the
international community started expressing concerns over the killings, the
Minister of Higher Education of French Cameroons hastily came to the Campus of
our University and agreed to grant all the requests we had in our memorandum a
month ago when the strikes started. Amongst which was the approval of a Buea
University Students Union UNIBSU. We held our first open General Assembly of
the just approved University of Buea Students Union (UNIBSU) on Wednesday the
1st of June 2005.
As we wrote in our last letter of appeal to you; on the 27th of April 2005,
paramilitary forces of French Cameroon shot using life ammunition at students
who were peacefully demonstrating to express their grievances against the
administration of the university and the annexation regime of French Cameroon.
This despite the express provisions of the law, including the law of Cameroon
forbidding the using of life bullets by security forces to restore order.

After we wrote on the issue last time, on May the 23 2005, the police again shot
at students with life ammunition killing one person and seriously injuring five
others.
The vice chancellor had decided to down play the problem of the strike by
issuing a communique over Cameroon Radio television stating that classes will
resume on the 19th May2005. We did return to school but decided to keep having
a seat-in strike until our concerns were attended to.
That morning of May 23 2005 the governor of the South West province showed-up at
our University entrance, and ordered us to immediately stop the seat-in strike
and go to class, which we rejected. He then ordered the police to disperse us.
>From there, the situation escalated and by the end of the day the police had
shot dead the one person and seriously injured the 5 others. You can see an
update with photographs on :
www.ambazonia.indymedia.org

On May 27 2005 after many foreign Institutions, dignitaries and foreign
governments started expressing concerns over the situation, the Minister of
Higher Education of French Cameroon suddenly showed-up at our campus and accept
all the demands we had on our memorandum at the start of the strike one month
ago, which included:
-Maintaining the school fees at 50,000 franc c.f.a, not jacking it up 100% to
100,000franc cfa as the government wanted to.
-Recognition of our Students Union: University of Buea Students Union(UNIBSU).
-Upgrading of our library with up-to-date books.
-Making it possible for all students to re-sit all courses if they have to,
without unnecessary bottle-necks from the school authority.
-Building of taps in the campus to allow us have drinking water without having
to buy water all the time from the shops owned by school administration
members.
-Construction of toilets in the campus.
-Improvement of the quality and quantity of food that we are served at the
school restaurant as well as reduction of the cost of the food.

Also all students detained all this while were immediate released from detention
on our request.
On the issue of the replacement of the vice chancellor, the Minister of Higher
Education indicated to our lecturers that it was an issue for the competence of
the president.

In effect, we do believe that the sudden showing up of the Minister of Higher
Education and his acceptance of the same memorandum we had issue a month ago
when we started this strike is indication that the government suddenly got
worried with the involvement of foreign universities, the public, dignitaries
and other governments.

Thus Sirs and Ladies we wish to thank you for all you support and yet point out
to you the fact that, the murderers of our mates and friends still roam in
freedom despite the express provisions of the law prohibiting the use of life
bullets to restore order.
We wish to point out to you that the soldiers who raped two of our mates on the
28th of April still roam in freedom.
We wish to point out that the soldiers who looted and destroyed our property,
brutalized us in our campus and neighborhoods, while we tried to have our just
demands addressed by the establishment, these soldiers still roam in freedom.

The events and the records of this government have it that this regime is in the
attitude of letting their forces, commit the above crimes against us the people
of Ambazonia with impunity. It is worth recalling that 13years after shooting
dead 6 people in Bamenda by the same forces and brutalizing hundreds of others
on May 26th 1992 on the lunching of the Social Democratic Front (SDF), no
soldier till date has been prosecuted on that account nor did any soldier get
any sanction of any sort for those crimes.
Three years after the shooting dead of peaceful demonstrators in Kumbo on
October 1 2003, the French Cameroon regime is still to let the law follow it's
course and bring those responsible to book.
Again from April 27th to May 27 2005, they have murdered in cold blood 5persons,
three directly from gun shot, at our peaceful students demonstrations and two
others died in hospital from injuries sustained from police brutalization at
the same peaceful demonstrations.

We call on you:
1- to insist that this government immediately dismiss all those involved
in these crimes, both those in the hierarchy who made the decision to have life
bullets at the scene of the demonstration and those who used the life
ammunitions on the students.
2- After their dismissal they should immediately be detain for trial.
Without which we are sure this impunity with reference to the above crimes will
only encourage repetition of such crimes, as the experience has shown.

We again thank you for your support which has made it possible for this academic
year to be salvaged with the government accepting our just demands.

Looking to hear from you, accept Ladies/Gentlemen, our best regards.
Sincerely yours
ASA university of Buea.

N.B. We here include as attachment a sample of the kind of letter you could
sign and send to the Cameroon President on the issue of the murderers of our
comrades.
You could as well fax it to the president through the Cameroon embassy closest
to you.
Please do not forget to copy us at our secure fax number:
ASA c/o ALIP US Branch
fax: fax:001952-922-9393
or send us a mail to indicate, so we could keep a record of those who
participated in the signature action.

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Sirs/Ladies since  the 27th of April 2005, students at the university of
Buea(Ambazonia)  have been on strike.
 On the 28th April 2005 the paramilitary police forces of French Cameroon
swooped down on students brutalizing,maiming, arresting, shooting two
students dead an  other reportedly died later from internal bleeding.

The reasons for the strike includes:
1- Being part of a nation-wide protest against attempts by the Minister of
Higher Education to raise fees at state universities by 100%.

2-To request for the university of Buea to build toilets within the school so
one can ease themselves in the campus if they have to. Since the opening of
the university some 12years ago there have been no functioning toilets in the
campus.

3-To request for water points in the campus so that one could have a drink of
water if  one is thirsty without having to buy from a shop. Strangely the
shops in campus are owned by senior officials in the administration, the same
people to decide on the construction of water points.  

4-To request the replacement of our vice-chancellor, as our present
vice-chancellor has repeatedly voilated our rights as students by banning the
students' union and setting up such an autocratic administrative structure
that has left students angry and frustrated  for lack of the possibility to
express their rights as students elsewhere do.

The above points and others which for lack of space cannot be included here
were reasons for our strike. Unfortunately the Registrar of the university
who has been part of this oppressive administration called the police to
disrupt our strike. In the event two students were shot death just because we
wanted to march to the governor to lodge our complains.
Close to 20 days since the murder in cold blood of our mates, the government
and the school administration are doing every thing to down play the painful
loss of our mates. The government has not made any apologies for the
incidents. All they have done is   set-up a commission of inquiry. Experience
has shown that Commisions of inquires in this country have always ended-up
covering-up for the government than throwing light on the issues for which
they were formed. Besides there is a clear legal provision that prohibits
forces from using life bullets in an attempt to restore order. But all of
that is totally being ignored while the murderers of our mates allowed to
roam in freedom.
On the side of the university, the Vice-chancellor thinks so low about us that
even with the death of our mates in this incident she has refused  to hold
any negotiations with us on the issues that led to the strike in the first
place. Rather she sent a communique over national radio calling for all the
students to come back to school that classes will start and that we all will
have to sign an undertaking of good conduct before we resume classes kind of
trying to some how make us responsible for the unfortunate incident.
We already have news that in the last administrative meeting of the May 4th  
2005 She practically held us responsible for the incidents. And as was the
case in 1995 we know she is looking for the student leaders so as to hold
them personally responsible for everything and then dismiss them from the
university.

In these circumstances, we believe the only way to get some justice is for us
to plead for solidarity from all freedom and justice loving peoples and
governments around the world to send messages on this issue to the president
of Cameroon, Mr.Paul Biya to use his high office and intervene in this
matter . Here as attachment is an example of how such a  message could read.
While looking to hearing from you, Accept Sirs/Ladies.
Our deepest Regards.
Ambazonia Students Association(ASA)  University of Buea

p.s .Sir/Ladies you can acquaint yourself with the details of all the
happenings with pictures, video and audio online at
www.ambazonia.indmyedia.org

you can fax your letter for the Cameroon President care any of the Cameroon
embassies closet to you.
e.g Embassy of Cameroon in London :Fax: +(44) 207 792 9353
embassy of Cameroon Switzerland :Fax:+41 (0)31 352 47 36
Embassy of Cameroon Paris :Fax No :-01.46.51.24.52

Please do not forget to copy us so we can inform our fellow students of how
much foreign support we are getting. Which is very necessary for us at the
moment as a moral boaster. our fax contact for security reason in the US is
ASA c/o ALIP US Branch
fax:  fax:001952-922-9393

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Protest Letter to the President of Cameroon Mr.Paul Biya on the shooting in cold blood of two STUDENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF BUEA on the 28th April 2005 by police.

Dear Mr. President,
We find it completely appalling that students protesting for basic needs like toilets in campus, availability of drinking water in campus, better furnishing of the library and laboratories, the right to get a new vice-chancellor that can really carter for the needs of students of the university of Buea; where reasons for such excessive response by your forces brutalizing, looting, raping and shooting two students dead on the 28th of April 2005 and one reportedly died later from internal bleeding.
It is an acceptable part of the civilized practices to use strikes as a way of expression, but IT IS NOT ACCEPTABLE FOR FORCES TO USE LIFE AMMUNITION AGAINST STRIKING INDIVIDUALS IN WHATEVER CIRCUMSTANCE. This is a fact of international law as well as yours here quoted; LAW NUMBER 90/O54 of 19 December 1990 on the maintenance of law and order; “-SECURITY FORCES SHALL NOT IN ANY CIRCUMSTANCE USE LIFE BULLETS IN THE ATTEMPT TO RESTORE LAW AND ORDER.

It is even more unfortunate that more than 20 days after the shooting, none of those involved in these crimes nor their superiors who made the various decisions on the issues is being detained for investigation and possible prosecution. The feeling that one can commit such crimes with impunity will only encourage the perpetuation of such acts again in the future.

The setting up of a commission of inquiry cannot justify the non detention and swift prosecution of the perpetrators of these crime, especially as there exist a law in your country prohibiting the use of life bullets in any circumstances to restore order.

We do know that this is not the first time that LAW NUMBER 90/O54 of 19 December 1990 has been violated by these very forces. But we strongly hope that this time you will demonstrate the will to make sure it never repeats itself by using your high office to see to it that the law is applied to it’s letter.
We are thus calling on you to use your high office and good faith to attend to these demands below as stated by the students in their recent writings and declarations, especially as the demands are legitimate and an issue of their very fundamental rights as students.

1-That all those involved in this odious crime as well as those in the chain of command involved with decisions to bring life ammunition to the scene of the demonstration, including those who gave the order to shoot, should be detained immediately and a Court trial began as soon as possible.

2-That Mrs. Dorothy Njeuma be replaced as vice chancellor of the university of Buea. She enacted laws intended to exclude students of Anglophone origin from the only supposedly Anglo-Saxon university in the country by placing special conditions for them to be enrolled in the university like; having only Anglophones who had passed English language in Ordinary level to be enrolled while no such criteria is being applied for students of Francophone origin. She abused her office by disbanding the student union in 1995 and then embarked on a witch hunt against the then students leaders making it impossible for them to continue their education in the Uniniversity or elsewhere in the country.
In Her last administrative meeting of 4th May 2005 she without any real stock taking of the situation or fact finding, rashly jumped to the conclusion that students where responsible for the present stalemate. As has always been her approach she is embarking on another witch-hunt for student leaders to scapegoat and dismiss.
She issued an order for the students to resume classes while refusing to be part of the team to negotiate with the students on the issues that led to the beginning of the strike in the first place, despite the unfortunate lost of two students in the event of things.
With such an attitude it does make a lot of sense when the students do not want her anymore as their vice-Chancellor.

3-The students also asked for the Registrar Dr. Herbert Endeley to be replaced for being very instrumental in maintaining the status quo in the university that led to the strike. Dr. Herbert Endeley is said to have refused to discuss the grievances of the striking students with them and had preferred to call their strike “a child's play”. Dr. Herbert Endeley is said to have personally phoned the police to come into the campus and stop the strike, which led to the slaying of two students.

4-That the Government issues an order in relation to the organizing of universities that allows for the Students in all the universities to exercise their right to organize themselves into an autonomous student union in line with international standards. This will make it possible for the students' concerns to be given the worth they deserve as is the case with students in universities elsewhere.

5- The government should give the university of Buea the infrastructure that befits a university with at least some minimums as: All lecturer halls having functioning toilets and water points were the students can drink from. The library should be furnished at least to the level of the other state Universities. The laboratories need to be upgraded to be able to allow for students to perform all the experiments in their experiment-manuals rather than graduating from the university without performing most of the experiments they are supposed to have performed in the course of their studies, as is the case now.

6-The University Senate should pass an injunction that expressly states to all Departments that all courses should come-up for re-sit with no restrictions as to the number of credits one should take in the re-sit, as is the case in all other universities in Cameroon. Which was one of the request from the striking students.

Sincerely,
Your name
Your country
Your organization (if applicable)

Send to:

President of Cameroon
Fax: +237-23-30-22

Prime Minister and Head of government Mr.Inoni Ephraim
fax: +237-23-57-35