Bakassi Movement for Self-Determination

The Bakassi Movement for Self-Determination (BAMOSD) is a militant organization that seeks for the independence of Bakassi, a disputed territory between Nigeria and Cameroon, as the Democratic Republic of Bakassi.

History

According to an email sent by Sive Ogan, a member of BAMOSD, the decision to declare secession from Nigeria was taken at a meeting in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State on July 2, 2006.

It has made two declarations of independence since its foundation in 2006: one on August 2, 2006 in light of the Green Tree Agreement between Nigeria and Cameroon, and another one on July 31, 2008 (two days less than two years after the first declaration of independence).

One of the first leaders of the organization, Tony Ene Asuquo, died less than a month after the first declaration of independence in a mysterious car accident.

Support and affiliations

It has been indicated in both Nigerian and Cameroonian media that the BAMOSD is backed by the militant MEND movement, which opposes the federal government and the predominate petroleum industry in the Niger Delta, and the SCAPO, which seeks independence for the nearby Southern Cameroons as the Republic of Ambazonia.