Story highlights Protesters in English-speaking regions are clashing with government forces

Streets in those areas are heavily militarized, a resident says

(CNN) Fear and uncertainty reign in Cameroon's Northwest and Southwest regions following a week of violent clashes between protesters and government forces that have left at least 10 people dead.

The office of the United Nations high commissioner for human rights urged the two sides to engage in dialogue and called on the Cameroonian authorities to exercise restraint when policing demonstrations in the two English-speaking regions.

"Credible sources indicate that some of these deaths resulted from excessive use of force by the security forces," said Rupert Colville, a spokesman for the high commissioner's office. "People should be allowed to exercise their right to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression, including through having uninterrupted access to the Internet."

Tensions boiled over October 1 when protesters took to the streets in Cameroon's Anglophone regions calling for symbolic independence from the country's French-speaking majority.

Multiple protests have taken place since last year, as English-speakers feel growing discrimination by the mostly Francophone government. Though both French and English are the official languages, English-speaking lawyers and teachers are protesting that they have to use only French as the official language.

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