Children continue to suffer in Cameroon Conflict

PC(USA) Stated Clerk issues call to prayer regarding the violence in Cameroon

This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA-NC.

Violent conflict continues in the Anglophone Northwest and Southwest Regions and continues to have a harsh impact on children. Most recently, on October 24, gunmen opened fire on children between the ages of 9 and 12 at the Mother Francisca International Bilingual Academy in Kumba, Southwest Region, killing 7 and badly wounding close to 20 others.

The Rev. Dr. J. Herbert Nelson, II, the Stated Clerk of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (USA) issued a call to prayer yesterday. He stated,

“The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) joins the Presbyterian Church in Cameroon and other partners in the country in vehemently condemning these violent acts that deprive children of their rights to education. We commend the Ecumenical Forum on the Anglophone Crisis (Ecumenical Forum) in Cameroon’s impassioned plea to the president of the Republic of Cameroon, Paul Biya, to address current security, humanitarian, and human rights challenges in Cameroon. We believe that engaging a real, inclusive, and transparent dialogue will be key to addressing the root causes of this crisis, which continues to kill and displace families and create a climate of chaos in the country.”

For more information about this conflict and its origins, please read the following:

A call to prayer on November 7, 2018, by the Reverend Dr. J. Herbert Nelson, II, November 7, 2018: https://www.pcusa.org/news/2018/11/7/prayers-cameroon/.

Growing Hostilities in Cameroon: A colonial past continues to divide people in Cameroon—Action Alert by Eileen Schuhmann | Presbyterian Hunger Program, November 12, 2018: https://www.presbyterianmission.org/together-justice/2018/11/12/growing-hostilities-in-cameroon-action-alert/.

Mission connections letter from Jeff Boyd—Crisis in Cameroon, December 2018: https://www.presbyterianmission.org/ministries/missionconnections/letter/crisis-in-cameroon/.

Action Alert from the Office of Public Witness of the PC(USA): https://www.votervoice.net/PCUSA/campaigns/77407/respond.