Video shared on social media of the demonstration on November 21.

Video shared on social media of the demonstration on November 21.

On Monday, military forces fired in the air to disperse the crowds.





On Monday, military forces fired in the air to disperse the crowds.

Several people were injured during the demonstrations. This video was published on Several people were injured during the demonstrations. This video was published on Facebook by Ni Solez (via Storyful).

The demonstrations began on November 21 after teachers started protesting against a local education system that they say is too French-oriented and doesn’t provide for English speakers. But it’s not just a quibble with education – a large number of English speakers say that they are treated like “second-class citizens” in the predominantly French-speaking country.Trade unions Cameroon Teachers Trade Union and Teachers Association of Cameroon called for teachers to strike on Monday and Tuesday. Thousands of people lined the streets of Bamenda, the region’s main city and the founding place of the country’s opposition party. It is also one of the two main English-speaking regions in a country divided into 10 regions – a holdover from British colonial rule.There were clashes with police, who used tear gas on protesters and fired in the air in a bid to disperse the crowds. Protesters responded by throwing rocks. The government announced that one person had died in the violence, while the opposition party claimed that there had been three deaths.By Wednesday the streets were calmer, and shops began to reopen on Thursday. Police forces continued to patrol the town, however, and schools had not reopened.Teachers oppose the fact that there are more Francophone teachers than Anglophone teachers in universities in the area, even though the majority of students are English-speaking. They also complain that Anglophone teachers are sent to work in Francophone institutions and regions.