HISTORY: 1957 LETTER FROM MPODOL
"I hesitated for a long time before writing this letter to you. Not out of fear, but because I thought the facts would speak for themselves. Yet I observe that a lie, when repeated often enough, ends up taking on the appearance of truth. Tribalism is one of the most fertile grounds for African political divisions. It serves as a playground for schemers and opportunists. We have no right to use the existence of ethnic groups as a means for political struggles or personal conflicts. [...]
By raising the specter of a 'Bamiléké peril,' you are objectively playing into the hands of those who want neither independence nor unity for Kamerun.
Cameroonians must understand that national unity does not mean the elimination of ethnic groups. Some believe that national unity requires the disappearance of ethnic groups, languages, and customs. That is assimilation. Others believe that every ethnic group must have its own state. That is balkanization. Both paths lead to the death of the nation.
Cameroonians must understand that national unity does not mean the elimination of ethnic groups, but rather their flourishing within a nation where all citizens enjoy the same rights and are subject to the same duties. An ethnic group is a cultural reality. A nation is a political reality. To confuse the two is to condemn the country to civil war.
Let a Bassa, an Ewondo, a Fulani, or a Bamiléké be judged in the same way, and have access to the same schools and the same jobs. As long as some regions are kept in destitution while others prosper, we will fuel a sense of injustice and a retreat into tribalism." ...ethnic. What unites men is not blood; it is a shared struggle.
Our goal is the independence and reunification of Kamerun. That is what will make us a nation. At the UPC, we do not ask anyone about their ethnicity. We ask: Are you in favor of immediate independence? Are you in favor of reunification? Are you opposed to forced labor and the *indigénat* system? If so, you are one of us.
That is our only form of tribalism: the tribalism of patriots. Félix Moumié is Bamoun, Ernest Ouandié is Bamiléké, Castor Osendé Afana is Ewondo, and I am Bassa. Who can claim that the UPC is the party of a single tribe?
Yet therein lies the crux of the problem: the refusal to engage in politics. We in the UPC are often told: "You are engaging in politics; that is dangerous. Focus on schools, the church, or commerce; leave politics to the white man." Our compatriots—especially the intellectuals—were urged to steer clear of politics so they could secure their own material well-being. We therefore strove to show them the deception inherent in such a campaign. Everything is political, and everything falls within the realm of politics. Religion has become political. Commerce is political. Even sport is political. Politics touches everything, and everything touches politics. To say one is not engaging in politics is to admit one has no desire to live. That is why we believe we must, above all, fight for fundamental freedoms—the essential guarantee of material success.
When the administration bans an UPC meeting, it claims it is politics. When the missionary preaches... ...from the pulpit that one must obey colonial authority—claiming it is a matter of religion. Yet in both cases, the aim is to keep the Cameroonian people under oppression.
You, as a Christian, can you turn a blind eye to forced labor? To the *indigénat* system? To villages being burned down? If you remain silent in the name of neutrality, that silence is a stance in itself. It serves the oppressor. Christ was not neutral when facing the money changers in the Temple. A Cameroonian Christian cannot remain neutral in the face of his people's suffering.
That is why, dear brother, I am writing to you from the heart of the resistance. For if we intellectuals do not engage in politics, others will do so in our stead—and against us. If we continue to pit ethnic groups against one another, if we make ethnic origin the criterion for political trust, then we are preparing our country for tears that nothing will be able to dry. The colonial administration will leave one day. But the hatred we have sown among ourselves will remain. And it is our children who will pay the price. Each leader relies on their ethnic group, the administration acts as arbiter, and Cameroon becomes a battlefield.
We place independence and reunification above all else. We will settle our disagreements later, as brothers, within a state that belongs to us all. There is no third way. Neutrality is an illusion. Silence is a betrayal.
History will be the judge. It will say who worked to unite and who worked to divide. For my part, I have chosen my side: that of unity, independence, and dignity.
I remain, despite everything, your brother in the struggle for Kamerun."
Maquis, July 13, 1957, Letter from Ruben Um Nyobè to André Marie Mbida
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