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Cameroon Quotes

Browse 18 quotes about Cameroon.

Cameroon Quotes

“I wish I could write their individual stories in the book of our lives with indelible ink, because we cannot compel the world to share our affliction, but we still have the duty to honour our dead. Tina said it: all it takes is for one person, just one, to burst into grief for the others to take up the song of mourning. That is our mission. That is our duty as survivors. We are all survivors in this country, to varying degrees. To survivors, the Lord, in His languid Mercy, grants unending years of contrition. This, at least, is necessary; otherwise, where would the salty water in the oceans come from?”

GriefLordSorrowCongoNigeriaCameroonHemley Boum
Book:Days Come and Go
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“Non-violent resistance supposes that the almighty enemy, at the very least, considers you to be a human being, capable of logically arguing why you disagree. It supposes that this enemy is ready to hear your demands and find common ground. Yes, Bamileke maquisards took up arms! But did they have a choice? Colonial masters feigned departure, but their cruel puppets continue to safeguard their interests through murder. We were cheated. Our struggle has been used to different ends. And, you will see, they will chop off any head that stands out, and then falsify our history. In fact, they won't; they will not even bother to record our history." "Who is "they?" I asked. "This 'they' is 'we’,” replied Louis. "We are the ones killing ourselves. Our killers are encouraged, trained, and funded by the former colonial power. But, and this is what makes it worse, we ourselves are the ones doing the dirty work with senseless enthusiasm," he added. That was how Cameroon—not just myself as an individual, or my village, Ombessa, or Bafia and Yaounde, the places where I had lived, but also this multi-layered, nuanced, bruised entity called my country—took shape in my mind.”

ColonialismBoko HaramCameroonDays Come And GoHemley BoumBafiaBamilekeMaquisardsOmbessaYaounde
Book:Days Come and Go
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“We still don't have a good word to describe what is missing in Cameroon, indeed in poor countries across the world. But we are starting to understand what it is. Some people call it 'social capital, or maybe 'trust'. Others call it 'the rule of law', or 'institutions'. But these are just labels. The problem is that Cameroon, like other poor countries, is a topsy-turvy world in which it's in most people's interest to take action that directly or indirectly damages everyone else.”

TrustInstitutionsIncentivesRule Of LawPoor CountriesSocial CapitalCameroonPoor Country
Book:The Undercover Economist
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“Pa had brought out our entire stock of beer. Simon, Roger and I had the job of serving. We ran to and fro between the kitchen, the living room and the porch. Our h-fi pumped out old Makossa hits: our parents’ favorites. A few women neighbors of their generation, also wearing kaba ngondos, had begun shimmying in the empty space at the center of the room. They looked like they were showing off: you can’t dance the Makossa without showing off.”

BrothersWest AfricaCameroonCameroonian AuthorCameroon AuthorQueer Stories
Book:A Long Way from Douala
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“In primary school in south-eastern Nigeria, I was taught that Hosni Mubarak was the president of Egypt. I learned the same thing in secondary school. In university, Mubarak was still president of Egypt. I came to assume, subconsciously, that he - and others like Paul Biya in Cameroon and Muammar Gaddafi in Libya - would never leave.”

StillsSchoolPresidentTaughtAssumingSouthUniversityPrimariesEgyptEasternNigeriaLibyaPrimary SchoolGaddafiSecondary SchoolMubarakCameroonMuammar Gaddafi
Author:Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
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“In terms of economical aspects, reinforcing those national parks with sophisticated anti-poaching patrols - these poachers are beefed up like the army. In the case of Cameroon, that's a perfect example of the lack of finance. The government could not provide the national park with more guards. Therefore, they lost the majority of the elephant population. I don't want to see that anywhere else.”

WantGovernmentLostTermPerfectCasesExampleAspectArmyMajorityPopulationFinanceParksSophisticatedElephantsNational ParksPoachingCameroonPoachers
Author:Veronika Varekova
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“South Africa is not Cameroon. It's a strong economy. I think they should be the first ones setting an example - improving the legal punishments for those that are involved, reinforcing the borders from every angle, meaning that even the diplomatic plane that lands in South Africa should not have the green light to leave without having the plane inspected. Obviously, those guys are often involved. If I get killed for saying that, so be it. That is the fact. There's way too many important people that are involved that don't want to change.”

PeopleIfsThinkingWayWantShouldFirstsImportantFactsLightGuyStrongEconomyLandExampleInvolvedGreenSouthPunishmentSettingSettingsPlanesBordersSouth AfricaImprovingAngleDiplomaticGreen LightsSetting An ExampleStrong EconomyCameroon
Author:Veronika Varekova
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