On a continued Fact Finding Mission as expressed on 21/06/2019 in a letter addressed to the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue (HD) in collaboration with the government of Switzerland, a representative of The Republic of Ambazonia, Mbafami Gorji-Dinka met with representatives of the HD, the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) and predominantly representatives of the Southern Cameroon Liberation Council (SCLC).

[1]. It must be noted that the The Republic of Ambazonia (whose independence was first proclaimed in Buea on 10/10/1990 and later upheld in 1992 by the Bamenda High court judgement HCB/28/92, under the leadership of HRH Fongum Gorji-Dinka with a track record of loyalty to the Ambazonia Revolution since 1985) has neither signed onto the Swiss initiative nor mandated the good offices of the Swiss government to act as a facilitator or a mediator between Cameroon and Ambazonia and that, such a fact finding mission is not to be misunderstood in any way as an endorsement of the Swiss led initiative.
[2]. It must be noted that no representative of the government of Cameroon was present in that meeting in which the representative of the Republic of Ambazonia was present and no form of dialogue or negotiation has taken place between the Republic of Ambazonia and the Republic of Cameroon.
[3]. The Swiss government in collaboration with the HD described her role as a facilitator mandated by the government of Cameroon in the crisis within the “north-western and south-western Cameroon”, adding that some Ambazonian persons and groups had contacted them in the course of the crisis, but declined to provide evidence of the Ambazonian group(s) that actually contacted them upon the request of the Republic of Ambazonia fact finder.
[4]. Furthermore, the Swiss government described her role as a neutral mediator with the intention to allow the parties to the conflict set the agenda for dialogue or negotiations but declined to provide evidence of a mandate from the government of Cameroon to affirm their role as a neutral mediator or a facilitator.
[5]. In addition, the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) purporting to have been tasked with the role of a facilitator by the “majority of the parties”, made no specific reference as to who selected which parties or the criteria used to select the parties they claim are representing the majority.
[6]. On the one hand, the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue (HD) working in collaboration with the Swiss government equivocally requested for evidence from the Republic of Ambazonia to prove that the description “Former UN Trust Territory of Southern British Cameroon” (now Ambazonia) is written in UN documents.
The following documents were provided:
(a) the United Nations Resolution 1608(XV)
(b) the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Cameroon
(c) UNHRC decision CCPR/C/83/D/1134/2002 of 10 May 2005 in the case of Fongum Gorji-Dinka - V - Cameroon which states in paragraph 2.5 that: “As a result of the "subjugation" of Ambazonians, whose human rights were allegedly severely violated by members of the Franco-Cameroonian armed forces as well as militia groups, riots broke out in 1983, prompting Parliament to enact Restoration Law 84/01, which dissolved the union of the two countries. The author then became head of the "Ambazonian Restoration Council" and published several articles, which called on President Paul Biya of the Republic of Cameroon to comply with the Restoration Law and to withdraw from Ambazonia.”
[7]. On the other hand, the Republic of Ambazonia is not aware of an impartial approach by the Swiss government or a similar request for evidence from Cameroon to prove that the territorial boundaries of Cameroon include the former UN Trust Territory of the Southern British Cameroons (now Ambazonia).
[8]. The government of Cameroon had earlier set out preconditions indicating that there will be no dialogue or negotiations regarding the form of the state including the illegal occupation of the former UN Trust Territory of Southern British Cameroons (now Ambazonia), which the “illegal occupier” Cameroon refers to as the North-West and South-West regions of Cameroon.
Contrary to being a neutral facilitator or mediator, the Swiss government in collaboration with the HD adopted the false precondition narrative of the illegal occupier by referring to Ambazonia as part of Cameroon, reducing the crisis to the internal affairs of Cameroon, of which Ambazonia is not part of. This narrative was stated in a letter of invitation from the HD in collaboration with the Swiss government sent to the leadership of the Republic of Ambazonia on the 19/06/2019 to the attention of HRH Fon Fongum Gorji-Dinka “on the perspective of finding a negotiated solution to the crisis in the Anglophone regions of Cameroon”.
[9]. On the 26/06/2019, the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) subsequently set the agenda for dialogue and negotiation in a follow up publication on their web site by misrepresenting the crisis as an internal affair of Cameroon; making reference to Ambazonia as the North-Western and South-Western regions of Cameroon. This position is consistent with that of the illegal occupier and contradicts the purported role of the Swiss government to act as an impartial and neutral facilitator or mediator to the crisis and in setting up a neutral platform for dialogue.
[10]. Also, by referring to Ambazonia as “the Anglophone regions of Cameroon”, within the context of the internal affairs of Cameroon, the door has been opened for parties such as federalists, unionists and citizens of The Republic of Cameroon to be entitled to the right of participation in any dialogue or negotiation process. This is perceived as a trap on the negotiation table intended to provoke the nationalists Ambazonians and the federalist with different interest groups into a conflict on the one side and at the same time into a conflict against Cameroon on the other side.
[11]. Furthermore, by referring to Ambazonia as the “North-West and South-West regions of Cameroon”, the Swiss government has demonstrated a blatant disregard for international law thereby acting as an enabler to encourage the annexation of Ambazonia by Cameroon, an aberration that has been condemned under international law, the UN, AU & EU.
[12]. On a presumption that the Swiss government is ignorant of the root cause of the facts surrounding the crisis, the Republic of Ambazonia maintained communications with the Swiss Government and the HD after the meeting in Geneva, making recommendations with evidence of documentations to persuade the Swiss government rectify those misrepresentations.
The HD and a representative of the Swiss government expressed regret over the frustrations caused by their choice of words and acknowledged the legitimacy of the evidence provided but did not rectify the misrepresentation seemingly due to a general sense of fear and pressure that Cameroon might refuse to engage in dialogue if those rectifications were made. The HD had earlier communicated unsuccessful efforts in persuading the Swiss FDFA to rectify the misrepresentations, suggesting that only the word “parties” should be mentioned in their future publications without specific references to the names and identities of the parties.
[13]. The sovereignty of nations is determined by demarcations of their territorial boundaries. In order to act as a neutral mediator or a facilitator, the Swiss government prior to dialogue or negotiation must also request for evidence of sovereignty asserted by Cameroon over Ambazonia, or must without prejudice permit both parties to the conflict to enter the dialogue or negotiation platform without evidence of their asserted territorial boundaries.
[14]. The Swiss led initiative is to prepare a dialogue or negotiation platform for making concessions within the context of the internal affairs of Cameroon, entirely different from arbitration, which is the hearing and determining of a dispute or the settling of differences between parties by a person or persons chosen or agreed to by them.
So long as the Swiss government maintains the precondition narrative of the illegal occupier in referring to the crisis as an internal affair of Cameroon, the agenda for negotiation has already been set and Ambazonia will never have the opportunity to present their case on that negotiation table. It is therefore very clear that the Swiss initiative is enabling the government of Cameroon avoid possible sanctions proceeding from international pressure on the Biya regime to convene an inclusive dialogue without preconditions and at the same time tolerating the Biya regime to continue waging a genocidal war on the Ambazonian population in the hope of winning the war without being confronted with the legal justification for the illegal occupation of Ambazonia.
[15]. The objective of the Swiss led initiative through the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue (HD) is to find a negotiated solution to the humanitarian crisis in the “Anglophone regions of Cameroon” within the context of the internal affairs of Cameroon. The humanitarian crisis is as a result of illegal annexation and illegal occupation of Ambazonia by Cameroon, and mediation to achieve a long term and sustainable solution to the conflict without preconditions can primarily be achieved through The Republic of Cameroon returning to her international boundaries acquired at independence as stipulated in article 4(b) of The African Union Constitutive Act and not by making concessions to an illegitimate aggressor based on sentiments for the humanitarian crises caused by the illegal occupier.
[16]. The Leadership of the Republic of Ambazonia is generally committed to dialogue on addressing the root cause of the current genocide going on in Ambazonia, initiated from the time the dictator Paul Biya declared war against Ambazonians which has resulted in the death of over fifteen thousand (15,000) Ambazonians killed by Cameroonian government militias, over 270 villages burnt down by the same government militias, over two million Ambazonians displaced into jungle forests and hundreds of thousands living in refugee camps in neighboring Nigeria.
[17]. The Leadership of the Republic of Ambazonia will welcome any measures taken by the good offices of the Swiss government to rectify those misrepresentations and will engage into a meaningful dialogue with the government of Cameroon through the Swiss led initiative at any agreed venue and time if the Swiss government chooses to act as a credible and competent facilitator in accordance with procedures for setting up a neutral platform for dialogue and subsequent negotiations between Ambazonia and Cameroon.
Mbafami Gorji-Dinka
Office of The P.A to HRH Fon Fongum Gorji-Dinka
Defence/Homeland Security, Republic of Ambazonia
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