Whereas the Government of Cameroon has repeatedly restricted freedoms of expression nationwide by shutting down the internet, harassing and detaining journalists, refusing licenses to independent media, and intensifying political attacks against the independent press; Whereas, following Cameroon’s October 7, 2018, elections, the African Union Election Observation Mission stated that the current framework needs to be strengthened in order to safeguard the democratic principles of separation of powers, fairness, and independence and impartiality, which the Department of State echoed, emphasizing the need to respect the rule of law, resolve peacefully any disputes through established legal channels, and avoid hate speech . Whereas Anglophone Cameroonians have long felt marginalized by official actions and policies of the Government of Cameroon; Whereas, beginning in late 2016, protests organized by lawyers, teachers, and students were violently repressed by the Government of Cameroon, leading to numerous deaths and imprisonments, including journalists and lawyers; Whereas, in January 2017, the Government of Cameroon ordered the suspension of Internet services in the Northwest and Southwest regions of Cameroon, the suspension lasting for 93 days and having a major, debilitating effect on the economy, educational institutions, freedom of expression, and social communication of the region's residents; Whereas the conflict escalated in late September and early October 2017, when Cameroonian security forces brutally cracked down on unarmed civilians peacefully demonstrating, resulting in at least 20 people dying and leaving over 100 injured; Whereas, in 2017, armed separatist groups launched a campaign to pressure school officials in the Anglophone region to go on strike as part of a boycott against the Government of Cameroon, and began burning school buildings and threatening education officials with violence if they did not comply with a boycott of schools in the Anglophone regions