Terrorist separatists have been forcibly collecting taxes from households to fund their plan to unite the two English-speaking regions of Cameroon into a single nation.
It was gathered that the development prompted women and senior citizens in the Northwest village of Barabanki to protest the departure of the separatists.
Separatist gang members invaded and kidnapped them while they protested. They were then taken somewhere in the neighborhood that was unknown, where they were told to take a seat. A curfew was also imposed on the village.
A terror group’s social media post that featured a video contained information about the kidnapping. The group referred to them as crazy and bold in the video.
They expressed disbelief that the women were pursuing them only a few hours after they engaged government personnel in fire combat. They accused the women of backing the opposition party.
The women were later released by their kidnappers, but they were hurt. Pictures and videos that were made public showed some people with wounds and others with bandages and plasters.
Meanwhile, Cameroon Women’s Peace Movement has expressed bitterness over the attacks, calling it “unacceptable”.
“We call on both parties to respect humanitarian law by ensuring women and girls are safe and not a target during armed conflict,” they tweeted.
Human rights activist, Barrister Agbor Balla, said the attack on these women is inhumane, senseless, and a glaring example of terrorizing the civilian population.
“The fact that they cannot show any modicum of respect to women who are their mothers shows the “ revolution” is at an all-time low. This is the apogee of lawlessness and criminality,” he stressed.
Women from the Northwest and Southwest have urged the government to take urgent steps towards peacebuilding in order to reduce abuses and gender-based violence against women.