Cameroon took full
sovereignty over the disputed territory of
Bakassi on Wednesday, state radio reported,
five years after an agreement with Nigeria
signalling the end of a bloody conflict over the
land. “The transitional period in the Cameroonian
peninsula of Bakassi has come to an end,” said
an announcement on the radio. Nigeria formally ceded Bakassi to Cameroon on
August 14, 2008, halting 15 years of border
conflict. A UN-backed period of transition agreed by the
two countries followed to allow Cameroon to
develop an administrative presence in the area. Nigeria’s Deputy Foreign Minister Nurudeen
Mohammed told AFP the government had
taken note of the landmark date. “This has been going on for 10 years. We are
aware. We are part of the process,” he said. The peninsula in the west of the country was
formerly part of South Cameroon, itself an area
of Nigeria, until inhabitants voted to join
Cameroon in 1961. It has around 40,000
inhabitants, including many Nigerian
expatriates. Nigerians living in the peninsula will now have
to apply for a visa or apply for Cameroonian
citizenship, and Cameroonians will have to
register with the tax authorities. Mohammed said a committee had been set up
to address a range of citizenship issues. In October 2002, the International Court of
Justice (ICJ) ruled that Bakassi, a 1,000-
square-kilometre (386-square-mile) patch of
Atlantic coastal swamp, was part of Cameroon,
not Nigeria. Cameroon originally took its claim over the
sovereignty of the potentially oil and gas rich
peninsula to the court in 1994. Nigeria relinquished any hope of legally
reclaiming Bakassi last October, when the ten-
year period to appeal the ICJ’s ruling expired. The decision not to appeal sparked wide media
criticism in Nigeria, including from local leaders
who alleged that Nigerians in Bakassi had been
abandoned by the federal government. Rights groups have warned that Nigerians in
Bakassi face discrimination. Much of the tension surrounding Bakassi
stems from the belief that it is resource-rich. Large chunks of the area have been gazetted
for exploration, but energy firms have typically
stayed clear given the uncertainty on
sovereignty. The area has also been a prime target for
Nigerian pirates due to its proximity to the
unstable but oil-rich Niger delta region, where
attacks and kidnappings are common. In 2009, the Cameroon government stepped up
its fight against the pirates by deploying an
elite army unit to Bakassi, and by later
establishing five military bases there
sovereignty over the disputed territory of
Bakassi on Wednesday, state radio reported,
five years after an agreement with Nigeria
signalling the end of a bloody conflict over the
land. “The transitional period in the Cameroonian
peninsula of Bakassi has come to an end,” said
an announcement on the radio. Nigeria formally ceded Bakassi to Cameroon on
August 14, 2008, halting 15 years of border
conflict. A UN-backed period of transition agreed by the
two countries followed to allow Cameroon to
develop an administrative presence in the area. Nigeria’s Deputy Foreign Minister Nurudeen
Mohammed told AFP the government had
taken note of the landmark date. “This has been going on for 10 years. We are
aware. We are part of the process,” he said. The peninsula in the west of the country was
formerly part of South Cameroon, itself an area
of Nigeria, until inhabitants voted to join
Cameroon in 1961. It has around 40,000
inhabitants, including many Nigerian
expatriates. Nigerians living in the peninsula will now have
to apply for a visa or apply for Cameroonian
citizenship, and Cameroonians will have to
register with the tax authorities. Mohammed said a committee had been set up
to address a range of citizenship issues. In October 2002, the International Court of
Justice (ICJ) ruled that Bakassi, a 1,000-
square-kilometre (386-square-mile) patch of
Atlantic coastal swamp, was part of Cameroon,
not Nigeria. Cameroon originally took its claim over the
sovereignty of the potentially oil and gas rich
peninsula to the court in 1994. Nigeria relinquished any hope of legally
reclaiming Bakassi last October, when the ten-
year period to appeal the ICJ’s ruling expired. The decision not to appeal sparked wide media
criticism in Nigeria, including from local leaders
who alleged that Nigerians in Bakassi had been
abandoned by the federal government. Rights groups have warned that Nigerians in
Bakassi face discrimination. Much of the tension surrounding Bakassi
stems from the belief that it is resource-rich. Large chunks of the area have been gazetted
for exploration, but energy firms have typically
stayed clear given the uncertainty on
sovereignty. The area has also been a prime target for
Nigerian pirates due to its proximity to the
unstable but oil-rich Niger delta region, where
attacks and kidnappings are common. In 2009, the Cameroon government stepped up
its fight against the pirates by deploying an
elite army unit to Bakassi, and by later
establishing five military bases there
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