THE ANGLOPHONE CRISIS: PROSTITUTION OF YOUNG GIRLS, ON THE RISE.
It has been a hot minute since I wrote an article on here, especially one of a political nature (which we tend to avoid for obvious reasons), but given the current state of situations in our country, this is quite necessary.
For the Past 3 Years, The People of the North West and South
West Regions of Cameroon have been going through hell, with some places more
affected than others and some months, more dangerous and violent. However the
truth is everyone one of us has been affected in one way or the other. What
started off as a peaceful protest against Marginalization and poor governance
by The Lawyers, Teachers and citizens of the North West and South West Regions
of Cameroon late 2016, has turned into a full blown “War” between Secessionists
and The Government (Precisely the Military), with the people caught in the
cross fires. Hundreds of Lives have been lost, Hundreds Arrested and detained
till date, Villages burned down to ashes, Public Establishments like Schools,
Hospitals, Churches Destroyed And the Future of Many youths snatched away from
them, right before their eyes. The crisis has forced half a million people to
flee their homes and left 1.3 million in need of aid, according to the UN
Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
Youths they say are the Leaders of tomorrow, but looking at what is going on currently in these regions of the country, it will be safe to say we have no future Leaders and that is quite sad. Thousands of youths have fled the ongoing crisis to seek refuge in the other regions of Cameroon. Some have even gone to neighbouring Nigeria. Schools are barely operational in the affected regions and the most affected of these Youths are the young girls.
Let’s Take Doula, The Economic Capital of Cameroon for example. Douala being the Closest City to the South West Region of Cameroon, unaffected by the ongoing crisis, has witnessed a significant rise in prostitution rates in recent times. A huge influx of young girls coming from the affected regions, desperate and in search of means of survival turn to Prostitution. So much so that it inspired the press to Speak on this: "The prostitutes of the crisis", a headline article published by newspaper Mutations focused on a report in a hot corner of Douala where displaced girls in search of survival, trade in their body because they have no other way to survive. Moreover, the metaphor used by the newspaper does not stop at pure prostitution. It is a society displaced and driven by the instinct of life. A widespread prostitution. While some people are getting involved with helping these internally displaced young girls and saving them from the Prostitution lifestyle, a hand full of others remain indifferent concerning the situation. They argue that prostitution is a choice and there are many other ways of making a living. Whether or not that is true, the reality is, Most of these girls can’t return home due to insecurity and uncertainty.
Youths they say are the Leaders of tomorrow, but looking at what is going on currently in these regions of the country, it will be safe to say we have no future Leaders and that is quite sad. Thousands of youths have fled the ongoing crisis to seek refuge in the other regions of Cameroon. Some have even gone to neighbouring Nigeria. Schools are barely operational in the affected regions and the most affected of these Youths are the young girls.
Let’s Take Doula, The Economic Capital of Cameroon for example. Douala being the Closest City to the South West Region of Cameroon, unaffected by the ongoing crisis, has witnessed a significant rise in prostitution rates in recent times. A huge influx of young girls coming from the affected regions, desperate and in search of means of survival turn to Prostitution. So much so that it inspired the press to Speak on this: "The prostitutes of the crisis", a headline article published by newspaper Mutations focused on a report in a hot corner of Douala where displaced girls in search of survival, trade in their body because they have no other way to survive. Moreover, the metaphor used by the newspaper does not stop at pure prostitution. It is a society displaced and driven by the instinct of life. A widespread prostitution. While some people are getting involved with helping these internally displaced young girls and saving them from the Prostitution lifestyle, a hand full of others remain indifferent concerning the situation. They argue that prostitution is a choice and there are many other ways of making a living. Whether or not that is true, the reality is, Most of these girls can’t return home due to insecurity and uncertainty.
Sources say the government has taken measures to curb the
internal migration of the Youth. The Minister of Territorial Administration is
said to have visited the affected areas with humanitarian aid. According to the
newspaper Le Quotidien, they state "Already 104 families assisted", A
Revelation made to the press on June 11, 2019 in Buea by Minister Paul Atanga
Nji himself. It must be said that he carried out this mission with the partners
of the United Nations. Cameroon Tribune, also reports that "The parliamentarians
are making their proposals". The opening of the 2nd ordinary session of
the 2019 legislative year saw the presidents of the Senate and the National
Assembly urge Parliament to accompany and support the initiatives taken by the
government for a definitive return to normalcy.
Normalcy right now seems to be a farfetched concept for the people of the North West and South West Regions. We however hope that the Government, rather than spinning in circles and doing damage control, should rather tackle the root cause of this problem and bring it to an end.
The People are Tired, The Youths need to go to school and The Citizens of these affected regions need to feel safe again. In the meantime, the ghost of this crisis continues to haunt the government and all parties involved
Normalcy right now seems to be a farfetched concept for the people of the North West and South West Regions. We however hope that the Government, rather than spinning in circles and doing damage control, should rather tackle the root cause of this problem and bring it to an end.
The People are Tired, The Youths need to go to school and The Citizens of these affected regions need to feel safe again. In the meantime, the ghost of this crisis continues to haunt the government and all parties involved
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