English vs. French tensions in Cameroon turn deadly

YAOUNDE, Cameroon (AP) — A single student out of 4,000 showed up on the first day of the new term at one high school in Bamenda, the English-speaking city at the heart of a deadly conflict in Cameroon over language in this bilingual West African country.

Tensions are so high that 10 people were killed in demonstrations over language discrimination in Bamenda in December, according to a coalition of human rights groups based in the city.

Two officials with the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium have been charged with terrorism and rebellion against the state for their role in the recent protests and face the death penalty if convicted.

Amnesty International has called for the release of Nkongho Felix Agbor-Balla and Fontem Aforteka'a Neba, saying that "this flagrant disregard for basic rights risks inflaming an already tense situation."

[...] the chairman of Cameroon's main opposition political party cautioned the president and his government against taking the situation too lightly, saying that "if this thing stretches out ... it might be a little too dangerous for our country."