Radicalisme religieux et insécurité transfrontalière en ‶pays mafa″ : cas des localités d’Assighassia et Tourou (1830 -2018)

Abstract

The work entitled Religious Radicalism and Cross-Border Insecurities in ̏ mafa country ̋: case of the localities of Assighassia and Tourou (1830- 2018), analyses the involvement of religious radicalism in the birth of border insecurities suffered by the localities of Assighassia and Tourou in ‶pays mafa″, from the period of Jihad to terrorism with Boko Haram. To carry out this study, a qualitative and quantitative survey was necessary. Thus, observation, interviews and focus group discussions enabled us to understand and analyse people's behaviour and their apprehension of the phenomenon of insecurity in these areas. The questionnaire also enabled us to analyse the chronological progression of insecurity and associated damage between 2014 and 2018 in Assighassia and Tourou. Assighassia and Tourou in the Far North of Cameroon border Assighassia and Tourou in Northern Nigeria respectively. This geographical proximity and border realities have led not only to the fluidity of the transit of goods and people, but also to the trans frontality of insecurity from Northern Nigeria to the Far North of Cameroon and particularly in the localities of Assighassia and Tourou (‶pays mafaʺ). These areas have been plagued by insecurity from the seventeenth century to the present day. From the 17th to 18th centuries the ‶pays mafaʺ faced religious jihadism led by Ousman Dan Fodio and his successors. Then, from the nineteenth to the twentieth centuries, the Assighassia and Tourou areas are faced with the slavery of Hamman Yadji, banditry and criminality led by cross-border populations and the extremist group following the example of the Taliban in Assighassia and Tourou. Finally, the 21st century is marked by terrorism in these areas, led by members of the Boko Haram sect. So terrorist attacks by the latter continue in ‶pays mafaʺ, and never cease to claim many victims and displace people from Assighassia and Tourou to other localities. These displaced people, most often left to fend for themselves, are living in dire poverty and food insecurity. That's why the government needs to respond effectively to the needs of the displaced populations, and to pay even more attention to the border areas by providing them with basic infrastructure, creating cross-border markets, and strengthening cross-border security in Assighassia and Tourou. It is also important for cross-border community leaders to promote a culture of peace for better integration and consolidation of populations both in Cameroon (Assighassia and Tourou) and in Nigeria.