Cameroon Takes Full Control Over Disputed Bakassi
State radio of Cameroon announced on August 14, 2013, Wednesday, that the country took full governance over the disputed territory of Bakassi. This statement marks the end of the interim period, which lasted for five years after signing the 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.
Bakassi was formally transferred from Nigeria to Cameroon on August 14, 2008, halting 15 years of border conflict.
The five-year transitional term was supported by the UN and helped Cameroon to develop an administrative presence in the area.
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.
In October 2002, the International Court of Justice ruled that Bakassi 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.
The
area is a prime target for Nigerian pirates due to its proximity to the
unstable Niger delta region, where attacks and kidnapppings 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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