Report reveals Ambazonia separatists losing diaspora financial support.

File photo of separatist fighters

A recent report released by the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organised Crime and Armed Conflict Location and Event Data, ACLED, has revealed a significant reduction of financial support for separatist militias in the restive North West and South West Regions of the country.



According to ACLED, the significant decline can be attributed to the increase in government’s surveillance of financial transactions and growing disillusionment within the Anglophone diaspora.

According to the report, the government of Cameroon long begun tightening its monitoring of financial flows between the diaspora and armed separatist groups in 2019, barely two years after the conflict began.

The report equally outlined how the government, through its national financial crime agency, the National Agency for Financial Investigation, known by its French acronym, ANIF, identified patterns in the collection of funds by separatist groups. 

“The government realised that separatist armed groups tended to collect their transfers in the early morning or late evening, and security forces began monitoring pickups at these times, which led to numerous arrests,” the report stated.

According to ACLED, the increased scrutiny done on all platforms has had a significant impact on the country. The report cited the case of a man who was arrested after authorities discovered a suspicious transfer from the diaspora in his bank account. 

The man is said to have subsequently been imprisoned at the Douala New Bell prison, illustrating the serious consequences for individuals involved in funding separatist militias.

The report added that government crackdowns are not the only factor contributing to the decline in financial support. It added that reports from other sources highlight growing distrust among members of the Anglophone diaspora.

This, they said, has been driven by suspicions of embezzlement and misuse of funds by separatist leaders. 

According to ACLED, many donors initially believed they were supporting humanitarian efforts, only to later discover that their contributions were being funnelled into the separatist conflict. 

“Many of the donors who had given money to activists fundraising for the separatist cause had been led to believe they were funding humanitarian, not militant efforts,” the report explained.

The report also linked the drop in financial support to atrocities committed by separatist groups against civilians. These actions, it stated, have tarnished the image of the separatists and repelled many former financial backers. 

“A decline in the credibility of the diaspora leaders was an important factor in the decline of diaspora donations. However, this decline was also linked to a decline in the credibility of the armed groups themselves, particularly in regard to their treatment of civilians,” the report concludes.

According to the report, in response to the decreasing financial inflows from abroad, separatist groups have increasingly resorted to forced taxation, extortion, and kidnappings for ransom to maintain their operations. 

 

This article was first published in The Guardian Post issue No:3256 of Friday October 11, 2024

 

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