ABSTRACT

Conflict is one of the defining features of the modern world. Since the end of the Cold War there have been countless conflicts that have involved the deaths of millions of people and the suffering and displacement of millions more. It is impossible to accurately quantify human suffering due to conflict. Conflict is an inevitable part of the society today, the ability to manage it well is of importance as far as development is concerned. The human society and indeed the entire world is daily increasingly becoming conflict-ridden as individuals and groups have in recent times found it difficult to tolerate, work and live together in cooperative ways. The implication of this scenario is that a nation is being adversely affected and consequently the wealth of the country will take a deep dive in the negative direction. It is altruistic that conflict is endemic and inevitable in human nature, since it often arises from inherent opposing interests of individuals and groups in work, religion and social relations^. The term “media” reflects a certain understanding about the role of the press in society. Media, the plural of medium, literally means the various technologies that convey information from ink on paper to telephones and television to the Internet. Despite its literal meaning, however, the word has come to imply information itself, and those who deal in it, more than actual newsprint and copper wires. The general objective of this work is to examine the role of the media in resolving conflicts. In order to achieve this, the work adopts the qualitative research methodology. One of the main findings of the work is that mass media often plays a key role in today’s conflict. Basically, their role can take two different and opposed forms. Either the media takes an active part in the conflict and has responsibility for increased violence, or stays independent and out of the conflict, thereby contributing to the resolution of conflict and alleviation of violence. The human society and indeed the entire world is daily increasingly becoming conflict-ridden as individuals and groups have in recent times found it difficult to tolerate, work and live together in cooperative ways. The implication of this scenario is that a nation is being adversely affected and consequently the wealth of the country will take a deep dive in the negative direction as a result of conflicts and thus the work strongly recommends dialogue as a peaceful process to be used in resolving.

CHAPTER ONE

GENERAL INTRODUCTION

Conflict is an inevitable part of the society today, the ability to manage it well is of importance as far as development is concerned. Conflict in it right is not evil but it management if not addressed with the keenest of attention can destroy developmental process. The media has a role to play in conflict. As a result of their ability to reach and influence large numbers of people, the media carry immense power in shaping the course of a conflict. Although many examples of the media’s negative contribution to the escalation of violent conflicts exist, fair and accurate journalism and media circumspect is vital for the development of every nation and attainment of peace. This chapter therefore examines the background to the study, the problem statement of the research, the questions the research answers and the objectives of the work. The objectives are the tasks the researcher undertakes in order to achieve the goals of the research. In order to investigate the role the media plays in conflict, the research adopts a qualitative methodology based on observations and interpretations of law and facts. The chapter identifies the relevant theories supporting the work, the scope of the study, the reasons for and significance of the study are equally treated in this chapter.

• BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY

Conflict is one of the defining features of the modern world. Since the end of the Cold War there have been countless conflicts that have involved the deaths of millions of people and the suffering and displacement of millions more. It is impossible to accurately quantify human suffering due to conflict. Conflict is a controversy, or a disagreement between two or more persons or group of persons or States^[1]. It can be argued that conflict has its origins in objective and subjective causes such as competition for external resources (for example, power, land or status) or it can arise when there is a clash between the internal beliefs, values, and interests of two parties. Conflict is a widespread phenomenon, and there are many different types: Intra-personal, inter-personal, Inter-State conflicts, Intra-State conflicts and so on.

The human society and indeed the entire world is daily increasingly becoming conflict-ridden as individuals and groups have in recent times found it difficult to tolerate, work and live together in cooperative ways. The implication of this scenario is that a nation is being adversely affected and consequently the wealth of the country will take a deep dive in the negative direction. It is altruistic that conflict is endemic and inevitable in human nature, since it often arises from inherent opposing interests of individuals and groups in work, religion and social relations^[2].

The term “media” reflects a certain understanding about the role of the press in society. Media, the plural of medium, literally means the various technologies that convey information from ink on paper to telephones and television to the Internet. Despite its literal meaning, however, the word has come to imply information itself, and those who deal in it, more than actual newsprint and copper wires^[3].

Mass media often plays a key role in today’s conflict. Basically, their role can take two different and opposed forms. Either the media takes an active part in the conflict and has responsibility for increased violence, or stays independent and out of the conflict, thereby contributing to the resolution of conflict and alleviation of violence. Which role the media takes in a given conflict, and in the phases before and after, depends on a complex set of factors, including the relationship the media has to actors in the conflict and the independence the media has to the power holders in society^[4].

Violent conflict in Africa has shaped and defined media and journalists in many ways. The conflicts of the post-colonial period left a legacy of guerrilla fighters adept at using media and communications as part of their struggle that affected the media in the post-Cold War period. Over the past two decades, from Rwanda’s genocide to the ongoing violence in Somalia to post-election violence in places such as Ethiopia, Kenya, and Guinea, the media has been a defining feature of many conflicts. Distilling what this has meant for the role of media in democratization requires a bottom-up approach, in order to understand the media systems according to their own logic, rather than an assumed normative and democratic role^[5].

Information is power and insight can impact on public discourse.  This way, perceptions can be changed by access to media. Different types of media are utilized globally to distribute knowledge and idealistically, free mass media is a tool of and signpost for democracy. Freedom of expression is not only the core of a healthy media but also a fundamental human right and vital for a democratic structure. It stands for freedom of speech, the right to information and the representation of different opinions in a heterogeneous society. In any culture of prevention, effective and democratic media are an essential part and indispensable for societies trying to make a transition towards peace and democracy. Harry S. Truman once said “You can never get all the facts from just one newspaper, and unless you have all the facts, you cannot make proper judgements about what is going on”^[6] this statement reflects the need for free access to unbiased information. Not giving people the possibility of political participation and not allowing them to express themselves freely is a significant cause of conflict. On the one hand free, independent and pluralistic media provide a platform for debate and different opinions. On the other hand, media can be misused for propaganda purposes, to incite hatred and spread rumours and therefore artificially create tensions^[7].

In Cameroon, there is an ongoing armed conflict as a result of the marginalization of Anglophones known as the ‘Anglophone problem’. The “Anglophone problem”, is a lucid coinage reflecting the unpleasant marginalization of the Southern Cameroons. It is a thorny issue in the body politic of independent Cameroon since the early 1980s^[8]. Since the French and British Cameroon reunited to become one country (the Republic of Cameroon), the country has been under the Francophone Leadership. There is a plethora of literature addressing the problem but much of it castigates the Francophone leadership for the “second-class” status of Anglophones in a bi-cultural Cameroon^[9].

The origin of the Anglophone crisis and the subsequent granting of a special status to the North West and South West regions of Cameroon can be traced right back to the reunification of the two Cameroons in 1961. The peoples of the North West and South West Regions (Southern Cameroons) constituted a UN Trust territory under British’s Administration until 1961, when a UN sponsored federal union with La Republique du Cameroun (LRC), a former UN trust territory under French administration, took effect^[10]. Despite the one, united and indivisible Cameroon hoax, the fact is that French Cameroun was a different country which gained independence from France on January 1, 1960 (as Republic of Cameroun) with international borders that did not include Southern Cameroons; which gained independence after a UN referendum on February 11, 1961. Even after the independent Southern Cameroons State joined French Cameroun in a two-state federation to form the Federal Republic of Cameroon on October 1, 1961, no Union Treaty was registered with the UN General Assembly secretariat as mandated by Articles 102^[11] and 103^[12] of the UN Charter.

Over the past 56 years, Southern Cameroonians have been emasculated to concur in the despoliation of their land; they have been marginalized and treated as “second-class citizens in Cameroon^[13]. In order to disarm, demobilize and reintegrate members of the armed separatists/secessionists groups, the government in 2018 created the National Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration Committee (NDDRC)^[14]. Article 2 of the Decree^[15] creating the committee provided that the committee shall be responsible for organizing, supervising and managing the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration of ex-fighters of Boko Haram and armed groups in the North West and South West Regions willing to respond favourably to the Head of State’s peace appeal by laying down their arms. Disarmament, demobilization and reintegration centers have been created in the country.

The Social media has played a great role in the ongoing conflict in Anglophone Cameroon. It is common for one to see texts, audio, videos and pictures circulating on social media (WhatsApp and Facebook) regarding the crisis for example police manhandling of striking Common Law Lawyers in the two English speaking regions of Cameroon on October 10, 2016; the messages concerning the strike took another twist from November 21, 2016 when the Anglophone teachers from basic to higher education joined the strike. On this same date, some youths in Bamenda, capital of the North West Region of Cameroon, took to the streets and images of youths fleeing gunshots from men in uniform also went viral. Thereafter, information and images of the strikes were distributed in an alarming proportion, with most of them containing elements of falsehood. The veracity of some of the images (pictures and videos) and information that were circulated during this period could hardly be ascertained^[16]. This research seeks to examine the role played by media in resolving this conflict.

1.3 RESEARCH QUESTIONS

This research seeks to answer the following questions:

1.3.1 Main Research question

What role do the media play in resolving conflicts?

1.3.2 Specific Research questions

1. i) What is the legal framework on media in Cameroon?
2. ii) What is the legal framework on armed conflicts?

• iii) How can the media be used to resolve the internal armed conflict in Cameroon?

1. iv) Are there policy recommendations on an effective way of using the media as a means of resolving the ongoing war in Cameroon?

1.4 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The objectives of this research are both general and specific.

1.4.1 General objective

The general objective of this work is to examine the role of the media in resolving conflicts.

1.4.2 Specific objectives

• To examine the legal framework on media in Cameroon.
• To assess the legal framework on armed conflicts.
• To investigate how the media can be used to resolve the internal armed conflict in Cameroon.
• To make policy recommendations on an effective way of using the media as a means of resolving the ongoing war in Cameroon.