Separatist fighters from Cameroon’s English-speaking regions want to put peace first on the occasion of the papal visit.
Several factions of separatist fighters from the North-West and South-West regions of Cameroon are calling for a three-day suspension of armed operations. This is to peacefully welcome the head of the world’s Catholic Church, Pope Leo XIV, who is making an apostolic visit to Yaoundé, Bamenda, and Douala from April 15 to 18, 2026. The “Ambazonian Defense Forces” have decided to allow the Pope to enter Cameroon in a peaceful climate. They want to convey the message that separatists are sensitive to peace initiatives.
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Three days of ceasefire is a truce during which Cameroonians in general, and residents of the North-West and South-West regions in particular, might not have to worry about the horrors of war. The conflict between separatist fighters and Cameroonian defense and security forces has lasted nearly 10 years, causing suffering for civilians. It has caused the deaths of 6,000 people according to international organizations and forced 700,000 people to leave the affected regions.
The Pope’s visit to Bamenda on April 16, 2026, promises to be a peace mission in one of the areas of Cameroon where armed violence resists peace initiatives. While several observers and analysts are wary of the truce declared by the separatists, others see it as a certain opening created by these fighters that could serve as an entry point to strengthen negotiations for a return to peace. However, on the part of government authorities, there has been no reaction to the separatists’ statements.
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The government has instead reinforced security measures in the North-West region, and particularly in Bamenda, where the Pope will hold a peace meeting with the Bamenda community at St. Joseph’s Cathedral before celebrating mass at Bamenda International Airport.
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