A newly released study has condemned France for its violent actions during Cameroon’s fight for independence in the late 1950s. Historians have documented that France waged a brutal campaign to suppress Cameroonian sovereignty, marked by “extreme violence.”
The official report, commissioned by the French government, describes how France engaged in mass forced displacements and confined hundreds of thousands of Cameroonians to internment camps. It also reveals that France supported brutal militias to crush the independence movement.
The commission, formed following President Emmanuel Macron’s 2022 visit to Cameroon, examined the country’s history between 1945 and 1971. The team, composed of both French and Cameroonian historians, delved into declassified archives, eyewitness accounts, and field surveys to explore France’s actions leading up to Cameroon’s independence in 1960.
According to the report, the violence led to the loss of tens of thousands of lives and the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people. This period of conflict was particularly intense between 1956 and 1961 as France worked to violently suppress the independence movement.
Despite this, the war in Cameroon remained largely unnoticed in France, overshadowed by the nation’s larger military engagements, particularly the war in Algeria. The study emphasizes that this “invisibility” should not distort the truth of France’s involvement.
The findings also address the lasting impact of this repression on the Cameroonian people, whose “profound trauma” persists to this day. The report also touches on France’s continued influence in Cameroon after independence, with its involvement in the country’s governance well into the 1980s.
As France faces increasing scrutiny over its colonial past, President Macron has expressed a commitment to continue addressing these historical wrongs. However, many argue that more action is needed to reconcile with Cameroon and its people.
