Bamenda leaders recount Anglophone crisis suffering, urging Pope Leo XIV to foster peace, healing, and reconciliation in Cameroon’s troubled regions.
Newsroom (17/04/2026 Gaudium Press ) Traditional and religious leaders in Bamenda delivered raw, firsthand accounts of the Anglophone crisis’s toll during a peace meeting with Pope Leo XIV on April 16 at St. Joseph Cathedral. Their testimonies painted a vivid picture of loss, resilience, and desperate hope for his intervention to foster lasting peace and healing.
The gathering united diverse voices—from kings and clerics to nuns and displaced families—each underscoring the crisis’s indiscriminate devastation across the North West and South West Regions.
Traditional Rulers’ Historic Welcome and Plight
His Majesty Fon Fru Asaah Angwafor IV, Paramount King of Mankon, opened with gratitude for the Catholic Church’s roots in his land. He noted that traditional rulers welcomed missionaries in the 1890s, donating land for churches and schools, including the cathedral itself—built on ground given by his father in 1935.
The Church’s contributions, from top schools and hospitals to universities, have uplifted communities, he said, while some outdated customs faded through education.
Yet the Anglophone crisis has shattered this harmony, targeting rulers as authority crumbled. Fons and chiefs have died, palaces burned, and many live in exile from their domains. The Fon expressed faith that the Pope’s presence would aid peace efforts and restore order.
Protestant Unity Forged in Crisis
Right Rev. Fonki Samuel Forba, Moderator Emeritus of the Presbyterian Church in Cameroon, spoke for Protestant, Anglican, and evangelical groups. He hailed the crisis for unexpectedly uniting Christians and Muslims against shared suffering, which ignores faith, race, or language.
Under Archbishop Andrew Nkea’s lead, a peace movement engaged separatists abroad and locally, preaching dialogue over war. Fonki called the crisis a “forgotten” global plight, invoking the African proverb: “When two elephants fight, it is the grass that suffers.”
Civilians, especially women and children, bear deep trauma needing healing. He urged the Pope to champion their initiatives for resolution.
Muslim Community’s Targeted Losses
Imam Mohamad Abubakar of Buea Central Mosque greeted the Pope as a divine peace-bringer. He detailed attacks: the November 14, 2025, Sabga mosque raid killing three and wounding nine; the January 14, 2025, slaughter of 15 Mbororo herders including eight children; and the 2020 Ngabur Massacre claiming 23 lives.
Muslim cattle rearers and traders lost herds and businesses amid the chaos. Thankfully, no religious war erupted, with interfaith love enduring. The Imam pleaded for restored peace.
Nuns’ Perilous Service
Sister Carine Tangiri Mangu represented consecrated women aiding the poor through pastoral care, hospitals, education, and trauma support. Their work persists amid fear since the crisis began.
She shared her November abduction with Sister Mediatrix near Baba 1: held three sleepless, hungry days in the bush, shuttled by motorbike at night, ransom demanded. The Rosary sustained them until local Christians secured release.
Such dangers define their mission, bolstered by faith and Marian intercession. She sought the Pope’s prayers.
Displaced Family’s Raw Survival
Denis Salo, with his wife and three children from Mbiame, called his address a “silver lining” to tragedy. A former wholesaler, he fled in 2017 as separatists killed neighbors and a friend, while soldiers torched homes—banning his goods.
Abandoning home, farms, and animals, they reached Bamenda, school halted. Stints in Douala failed; now he guards a hospital gate and gardens a parish, crammed in rented quarters.
His tale mirrors thousands uprooted, clinging to hope.
Collective Call to the Holy Father
Every speaker—from Fon to family—voiced trauma’s universality and peace’s urgency. They thanked the Pope’s visit, eyed his global voice for dialogue, and invoked prayers for reconciliation in war-torn lands. In Bamenda’s cathedral, suffering met solidarity, kindling fragile optimism.
- Raju Hasmukh with files from ACI Africa
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