A Cameroonian separatist leader has been arrested in Norway over his alleged role in the ongoing armed conflict in the Central African country.
Lucas Ayaba Cho was arrested on Tuesday on “charges based on his various statements on social media,” his lawyer told the BBC.
Cho is an influential figure in the English-speaking movement fighting for independence in Cameroon, where more than 6,000 people have been killed and nearly a million displaced since fighting began in 2016.
Some residents of the country’s two English-speaking provinces say they face discrimination by the French-speaking majority.
Human rights organization Amnesty International accuses both government forces and armed separatists of murder, rape and torture of civilians.
A Cameroonian official told the BBC that Norway and Cameroon have a security agreement that states Cho could be extradited in the coming days.
Cho, who describes himself as a liberation leader, is one of the most prominent separatist leaders shaping the conflict in Cameroon’s restive English-speaking regions.
The 52-year-old is head of the Ambazonia Governing Council (AGovC), a political wing of the Ambazonian Defence Forces (ADF), one of the armed groups seeking independence from Cameroon.
He leads his movement from his base in Norway, where he is believed to have recently ordered a two-week lockdown as part of the separatists’ campaign to boycott schools.
The Norwegian National Criminal Investigation Service (KRIPOS) said Cho “played a central role in an ongoing armed conflict in Cameroon”.
On Wednesday, Norwegian investigators asked the Oslo court for his custody.
“We are still at an early stage of the investigation and there are several investigative steps yet to be taken,” said Norwich District Attorney Anette Berger.
If found guilty in Cameroon, Cho could face up to 30 years in prison.
Emmanuel Nsahlai, a US lawyer who represents victims of Cameroon’s Anglophone crisis, called Cho’s arrest a “major victory” over separatist violence in Cameroon.
“This arrest is an important step in holding him accountable for his actions and bringing justice to the victims of his violence,” said Mr Nsahlai.
Cho is not the first separatist leader to be arrested abroad in connection with the violence in Cameroon.
Since the conflict broke out, the Cameroonian government has urged other countries hosting separatist leaders to return them to their home countries so they can be tried for their roles in the ongoing violence.
In 2018, Julius Sisiku Ayuk Tabe, the leader of the English-speaking separatist movement, and 46 others were arrested in Nigeria and later extradited to Cameroon.
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