The Reunification Question in Cameroon History: Was the Bride an Enthusiastic or a Reluctant One?

Vanguard or vandals: youth, politics, and conflict in Africa

“…Instead, it soon became evident that the Francophone political elite preferred a highly centralized, unitary state as a means of promoting national unity and economic development. While the Francophone elite received strong support from the French during constitutional negotiations, the Anglophone elite was virtually abandoned by the British who deeply resented the Southern Cameroons option for reunification with Francophone Camer oon (Awasom 2000). As a result, rumours quickly spread through the region that Charles de Gaulle looked upon the Southern Cameroons as 'a small gift of the Queen of England to France' (Jua & Konings forthcoming).…”

Occupation of Public Space Anglophone Nationalism in Cameroon

“…Instead, it soon became evident that the Francophone political elite preferred a highly centralised, unitary state as a means of promoting national unity and economie development. While the Francophone elite ANGLOPHONE NATIONALISM IN CAMEROON 613 received strong support from the French during the constitutional negotiations, the Anglophone elite was virtually abandoned by the British, who deeply resented the Southern Cameroons option for reunification with Francophone Cameroon (Awasom 2000). As a result, a rumour quickly spread through the region that Charles de Gaulle looked upon the Southern Cameroons as "a small gift of the Queen of England to France" (Milne 1999: 432-448;Gaillard 1994).…”

“…The idea of reunification, which had been mainly 'propagated by the radical nationalist party in Francophone Cameroon, the Union des populations du Cameroun (UPC), and Francophone immigrants 11. MONGA (1996: 89) in Anglophone Cameroon (Joseph 1977;Awasom 2000), had for a long time remained a mere slogan in Anglophone Cameroon and had simply been rejected by the French colonial administration and the majority of the Francophone political elite. Many Anglophones did eventually vote for reunification but only after they had been forced by external forces to abandon their preferred option of creating an independent state.…”

“…It soon became evident that the majority of the Southern Cameroonians would opt for the creation of an independent state (Awasom 2000;Konings & Nyamnjoh 2003). That their expressed wish was eventually not honoured must be attributed to two main factors.…”

“…Several authors have tried to explain the emergence and development of what has come to be called the "Anglophone problem" (Konings & Nyamnjoh 1997, 2000, 2003Eyoh 1998;Jua 2003). Most agree that its roots may be traced back as far as the partitioning, after World War One, of the erstwhile German Kamerun Protectorate (1884Protectorate ( -1916 between the French and English victors, first as mandates under the League of Nations and later as trusts under the United Nations.…”