YAOUNDE, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Cameroon religious leaders plan to hold an Anglophone General Conference to seek a "lasting solution" to the conflict that has ravaged large part of the country, conveners of the conference said on Thursday.
"This conference will initiate dialogue that will possibly end the crisis. We want to heal the wounds of divisiveness in our nation through inclusive dialogue," cardinal Christian Tumi, chairman of the conference, told Xinhua.
The conference to be held in November in Buea, chief town of the country's Southwest, will bring together all Anglophone Cameroonians and if possible armed separatists and government officials to sit at the table and talk, said Rt. Rev. Fonki Samuel Forba, moderator of the Presbyterian Church in Cameroon.
"Our doors and minds are open. We want everybody to be part of this conference. We really want to end the suffering of our people. Let's sit down and talk," Rev. Forba said.
The conference is yet to officially receive the green light of the government, but cardinal Tumi revealed they have sought an audience with the president to discuss the conference.
Since November last year, government forces have been clashing with the armed separatist forces who want the two English-speaking regions of Cameroon's Northwest and Southwest to secede from the majority French-speaking nation and form a new country called "Ambazonia."
Clashes between the armed separatists and government forces have claimed the lives of 170 security forces, leaving more than 200,000 people displaced.
