13. Central African refugee Mbororo nomads in Cameroon: Cultural hostages?
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Adamou Amadou
Abstract
This chapter deals with pastoralists who used to be mobile for the purposes of their pasturage needs and then suddenly found themselves (im)mobilized in refugees camps. These people are known as Mbororo, both in Cameroon and in the Central African Republic (CAR). In the 1980s, they migrated from Cameroon to CAR. Their pastoral activities were prosperous, and their relationship with local farmers (mostly Gbaya) was also good. This relationship is based on the exchange of meat from the pastoralists and cassava flour from the farmers. Farmer-pastoralist conflicts were resolved between the two communities, and coexistence continued. The Mbororo integrated into the political sphere when the CAR state created pastoral communes, and some refugees we met in a refugee camp were even the mayors of such communes. Things changed drastically in 2003 when François Bozizé, ex-chief of the army, engaged in a rebellion against his mentor, President Ange Felix Patassé. As the rebels lived in the bush, they relied on the nomads for food and money, both derived from the nomads’ herds. The Mbororo were obliged to sell their animals at the rebels’ orders. In addition, the bush became a prolific avenue for the movement of weapons.With this development, bandits known as zarguina, who used to block roads to extort travellers’ goods and money, changed their technique of operation: kidnappings of children, women, and elderly became frequent and led to the loss of hundred lives and thousands of cattle. The Mbororo resisted, but with the deterioration of the political situation in CAR, they fled to Cameroon. In 2013 the events were repeated with the arrival of Séléka and then Anti-balaka, two opposing armed groups. This chapter looks at these formerly mobile nomads, now (im)mobile in refugee camps, and examines these mobile-immobile groups in their fight to preserve their nomadic culture-whether through resignation to their circumstances, ethnic associations, activism, or means which lead them to radicalization.
Abstract
This chapter deals with pastoralists who used to be mobile for the purposes of their pasturage needs and then suddenly found themselves (im)mobilized in refugees camps. These people are known as Mbororo, both in Cameroon and in the Central African Republic (CAR). In the 1980s, they migrated from Cameroon to CAR. Their pastoral activities were prosperous, and their relationship with local farmers (mostly Gbaya) was also good. This relationship is based on the exchange of meat from the pastoralists and cassava flour from the farmers. Farmer-pastoralist conflicts were resolved between the two communities, and coexistence continued. The Mbororo integrated into the political sphere when the CAR state created pastoral communes, and some refugees we met in a refugee camp were even the mayors of such communes. Things changed drastically in 2003 when François Bozizé, ex-chief of the army, engaged in a rebellion against his mentor, President Ange Felix Patassé. As the rebels lived in the bush, they relied on the nomads for food and money, both derived from the nomads’ herds. The Mbororo were obliged to sell their animals at the rebels’ orders. In addition, the bush became a prolific avenue for the movement of weapons.With this development, bandits known as zarguina, who used to block roads to extort travellers’ goods and money, changed their technique of operation: kidnappings of children, women, and elderly became frequent and led to the loss of hundred lives and thousands of cattle. The Mbororo resisted, but with the deterioration of the political situation in CAR, they fled to Cameroon. In 2013 the events were repeated with the arrival of Séléka and then Anti-balaka, two opposing armed groups. This chapter looks at these formerly mobile nomads, now (im)mobile in refugee camps, and examines these mobile-immobile groups in their fight to preserve their nomadic culture-whether through resignation to their circumstances, ethnic associations, activism, or means which lead them to radicalization.
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Table of Contents V
- 1. Introduction: Biographies of radicalization–hidden messages of social change 1
- 2. ‘The heavens have already burned’: Reflections on radicalism 15
- 3. Pathways to home-grown jihadism in the Netherlands: The Hofstadgroup, 2002–2005 25
- 4. How Muhammad al-Wali developed a radical definition of the unbeliever 39
- 5. The jihad of Sheikh Ahmet Ismael Bichara in Kouno: An example of an outbreak of extremism based on religion 51
- 6. Ruben Um Nyobe: Camerounian maquis, radical, and liberator, ca 1948–1958 65
- 7. ‘It’s the way we are moulded’ 85
- 8. Radicalization processes and trajectories in western Chad 103
- 9. Radicalization in northern Nigeria: Stories from Boko Haram 114
- 10. A rebel youth? Social media, charismatic leadership, and ‘radicalized’ youth in the 2015 Biafra protests 134
- 11. Hamadoun Koufa: Spearhead of radicalism in central Mali 152
- 12. Central Mali: Toward a Fulani question? 174
- 13. Central African refugee Mbororo nomads in Cameroon: Cultural hostages? 194
- 14. Islam and radicalization in Senegal: A response in female preaching 216
- 15. Legacies of political resistance in Congo-Brazzaville 230
- 16. ‘Give the Youth a Voice’: A reflection on the Rencontres V4T@Dakar, 15–18 November 2017 244
- List of Authors 256
- List of Abbreviations VII
- Acknowledgements IX
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Table of Contents V
- 1. Introduction: Biographies of radicalization–hidden messages of social change 1
- 2. ‘The heavens have already burned’: Reflections on radicalism 15
- 3. Pathways to home-grown jihadism in the Netherlands: The Hofstadgroup, 2002–2005 25
- 4. How Muhammad al-Wali developed a radical definition of the unbeliever 39
- 5. The jihad of Sheikh Ahmet Ismael Bichara in Kouno: An example of an outbreak of extremism based on religion 51
- 6. Ruben Um Nyobe: Camerounian maquis, radical, and liberator, ca 1948–1958 65
- 7. ‘It’s the way we are moulded’ 85
- 8. Radicalization processes and trajectories in western Chad 103
- 9. Radicalization in northern Nigeria: Stories from Boko Haram 114
- 10. A rebel youth? Social media, charismatic leadership, and ‘radicalized’ youth in the 2015 Biafra protests 134
- 11. Hamadoun Koufa: Spearhead of radicalism in central Mali 152
- 12. Central Mali: Toward a Fulani question? 174
- 13. Central African refugee Mbororo nomads in Cameroon: Cultural hostages? 194
- 14. Islam and radicalization in Senegal: A response in female preaching 216
- 15. Legacies of political resistance in Congo-Brazzaville 230
- 16. ‘Give the Youth a Voice’: A reflection on the Rencontres V4T@Dakar, 15–18 November 2017 244
- List of Authors 256
- List of Abbreviations VII
- Acknowledgements IX
