Crux

Religious and traditional leaders in Cameroon’s war-ravaged English-speaking North West and South West regions have pledged to assist the government in restoring lasting peace. Their efforts are in response to Pope Leo XIV’s appeals during his visit to the country earlier this year. “The masters of war pretend not to know that it takes only a moment to destroy, yet often a lifetime is not enough to rebuild,” the pope said on April 16, 2026, in Bamenda, the capital of the troubled North West region. “They turn a blind eye to the fact that billions of dollars are spent on killing and devastation,” the pontiff said, “yet the resources needed for healing, education, and restoration are nowhere to be found.” These words resonate deeply in a region that has been reeling from conflict for the last decade, a crisis born out of a desire by separatists in the two regions to secede and form a new nation called Ambazonia. Decades of marginalization and injustice against Cameroon’s English-speaking population have fueled the fighting, which has claimed at least 6,500 lives and displaced nearly a million people. Kidnappings for ransom have been rife, property has been destroyed, children have been denied education, and farmers have struggled to cultivate their land. “The time for peace is now, not tomorrow,” Pope Leo XIV told Cameroonians. Responding to this call, Archbishop Andrew Nkea Fuanya, President of the National Episcopal Conference, emphasized the need for immediate action. “If the time for peace is now, how do we make that happen? We have to set up committees to study how to implement the Pope’s words,” he said shortly after the Pontiff’s departure. “How do we dialogue with the separatists in the bush? And how do we get the separatists to dialogue with the government? These are things that we, members of civil society and the Church, must do to ensure the words of the Pope don’t get wasted.” Archbishop Nkea acted swiftly, forming committees comprised not only of religious leaders but also traditional authorities from the two regions. Their mission was to propose concrete steps for peace. Consequently, religious and traditional leaders from the North West and South West convened in Buea from September 2-3. Following extensive deliberations on the crisis, they established a strategic roadmap for peace. This document was presented to Prime Minister and Head of Government Joseph Dion Ngute on September 7, 2026. The roadmap outlines concrete measures for reconciliation, justice, and social cohesion, aligning closely with the Pope’s recommendations. “We recognized that it was necessary for traditional and religious authorities to work together to see how justice, peace, reconciliation, and forgiveness can be restored to our communities,” Bishop Michael Bibi said shortly after the meeting. This initiative carries profound weight for millions of inhabitants in regions paralyzed by nearly a decade of conflict. In the document, the leaders pledged to advocate for peace at their respective levels. Traditional leaders committed to conveying messages of reconciliation directly to their communities, while the bishops pledged to reinforce this call within the church and amongst Christians. Bibi noted that the document was developed with input from various stakeholders, including separatists. Bibi has met separatists in some of the most volatile areas in the South West region. “The separatists have given their own proposals,” he told Crux Now. “When you meet them, they say, ‘Tell the government to release the prisoners locked up because of this crisis’,” Bibi said. “I think the President of the Republic has the power to grant clemency,” he said. “He could say, ‘Look, you all did something that was not correct, but I decide to let you go free without any conditions.’ That would be a way to pacify the people,” the bishop said. Hundreds of separatist leaders, including Sisiku Ayuk Tabe, the President of the putative Republic of Ambazonia, are currently serving life sentences. Bibi believes granting them clemency could be a potential game-changer. “The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches us in paragraph 982 that no matter the gravity of the crime, if a person comes to God with a contrite heart,” he said, “God is ready to forgive.” “The father of the nation can facilitate this new beginning,” Bibi said. The document also proposes demilitarizing the two regions and calls for an inclusive dialogue that brings separatists to the discussion table. “[W]hen you station troops permanently,” Bibi said, “it feels like war.” “The civil society and the Church must ask: What can we do to bring these people together?” Bibi also told Crux Now. “We must listen to the proposals of the separatists and the mindset of the government to find a middle ground,” he said. “There is no problem in the world that gunfire will solve. There must be dialogue,” he said. Reflecting on the meaning of peace, Bishop Bibi insisted that “there can’t be peace without justice.” “Peace begins from the individual and the family life—peace in our small Christian communities, mission stations, parishes, and the society as a whole. Every Christian is supposed to be a peace bearer,” he asserted. However, he explained that attaining such peace is only possible if there is a true sense of justice in society.

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