“We have shared our experience of conflict resolution, and we call on all parties to remain engaged in Swiss-led efforts to facilitate talks,” Duddridge said in a letter dated 23 April 2021 and addressed to Rt Hon Ed Davey MP.

The Swiss Confederation had expressed its readiness to support national initiatives that can lead to lasting peace in Cameroon. This was disclosed after an audience granted by President Paul Biya to His Excellency Pietro Lazzeri, the Swiss Ambassador to Cameroon on 4 April 2019.

On June 27, 2019, Switzerland announced it had agreed to mediate talks between Cameroonian authorities and separatists in a bid to end escalating violence in the country’s Anglophone regions.

“Switzerland was tasked by a majority of the parties with facilitating an inclusive negotiation process,” the Swiss foreign affairs department (FDFA) said in a statement following two days of talks with a number of opposition groups. “The aim of the meeting was to prepare the future peace negotiations.”

The FDFA has since declined to elaborate on which parties it had met and on the timeline for future talks.

At a time when many think that the Swiss-led talks had hit the rocks, the UK Minister for Africa calls on all parties to remain engaged in Swiss-led efforts to facilitate talks.

On 30 March 2021, Rt Hon Ed Davey, Liberal Democrat MP for Kingston and Surbiton dispatched a correspondence about Cameroon to the UK Foreign Secretary.

The Minister for Africa replied that, “The UK Government is deeply concerned about the situation in the North-West and South-West (Anglophone) regions of Cameroon. It is a crisis that continues to have tragic impacts on civilians.”

James Duddridge, MP Minister for Africa wrote, “We regularly raise our concerns about the crisis with the Government of Cameroon at the highest levels. In a visit to Cameroon in March 2021, I met President Biya, Prime Minister Ngute, and Foreign Minister Mbella Mbella, where I set out the UK’s commitment to supporting a peaceful resolution to the crisis. During my visit, I also met the President of the South-West Regional Assembly, civil society organizations, political opposition leaders, and religious leaders to learn more about the situation on the ground and hear directly the experiences of the communities impacted by the crisis.

“I would like to reassure you and your constituent that the UK Government continues to call for inclusive dialogue that addresses the root causes of the crisis. We have shared our experience of conflict resolution, and we call on all parties to remain engaged in Swiss-led efforts to facilitate talks.

“In September 2020, I announced £4.5 million of additional humanitarian funding for Cameroon, to bring the total for 2020 to £13.5 million. This has provided tens of thousands of vulnerable people with food packs, sanitation provisions, and medical supplies, as well as training for health workers. As part of my visit, I traveled to the South-West region and met international project partners delivering this vital aid, who described to me the challenges of providing humanitarian support. The UK continues to press the importance of unimpeded humanitarian access.

“The FCDO [the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office] also works in conjunction with international partners to raise the crisis in multilateral fora. At the UN Security Council briefing on Central Africa on 9 December 2020, the UK reiterated the UN Secretary General’s call for an end to violence and for all actors to refrain from attacks against civilians.

“Reports of human rights violations and abuses by security forces and armed separatists are disturbing. As the UK’s International Ambassador for Human Rights set out at the UN Human Rights Council on 26 February 2021, the violence must end and urgent, impartial investigations must hold the perpetrators to account. We continue to urge the Government of Cameroon to engage fully with the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to ensure the protection and promotion of human rights for all.”