299 More Cameroonians Flown in From CAR

The seventh civilian flight undertaken by Camair-Co in the Presidential repatriation operation of Cameroonian citizens trapped in the Central African Republic civil war and the 26th Air force flight brought in 219 and 80 more people respectively, the majority of them women and children last Friday, December 27 and Saturday December 28. The two planes touched down at the Douala International Airport in an atmosphere of anxiety from compatriots present at the airport and visible relief and satisfaction on the faces of repatriated Cameroonians alighting from the plane.

"The President has done a very good thing by flowing us back into the country", Bouba Housseini, owner of a building material shop in Bangui told CT on arrival, stating inter alia that he lost his shop and all its content in PK 13, a neighbourhood in Bangui.. In effect, all those who were interviewed at the airport on arrival confessed they had brought virtually nothing along with them. The joy of regaining freedom and landing back in their country partly reduced the shock in them even though many especially those who have spent all their lives in the Central African Republic will have the problem of integrating their families.

Abdouramane Abdou, a truck driver and father of five had his wife give birth at the Embassy a day preceding their departure for Cameroon. "My wife delivered with the help of a medical student who was with us as I went back to bring one of my children to the Embassy", he said. The 299 people went through the same process as those who arrived earlier; identification of their areas of origin, medical care for those that are sick and collective transportation to their families.

The Littoral Regional President of the of the Crisis Unit Charged with welcoming and accompanying repatriated Cameroonians to their various families, Joseph Beti Assomo, remains assuring of the continuity of the operation till further notice. Last Friday and Saturday's arrivals bring to 3,160 the number of Cameroonians already repatriated from the war-torn country.