“The angry crowd caught the gendarme officer who carried out the act as he attempted to escape and lynched him to death,” the Cameroonian Bishop recalls the events of October 14, and adds, “The late Carolaise was buried around 6:30 p.m. Thursday at Saint Anthony of Padua’s Parish Cemetery Buea Town.”
“I feel the pains of the family of the late Carolaise and those who have lost their loved ones in similar circumstances,” the Catholic Bishop says, adding, “I extend my condolences to the bereaved families and urge you all to pray for the dead.”
He promises to have an organized session of prayer for the late young girl saying, “The Diocese of Buea shall organize a special Mass to pray for her in the nearest future.”
Dozens of people reportedly took to the streets to protest the killing of the girl, some waving tree branches in a sign of peace, others waving 500-franc notes (worth about $0.88), which they said was how much the girl’s parents refused to pay before the police officer opened fire.
In his October 14 statement, Bishop Bibi condemns the murder of the pupil and the lynching of the police officer saying, “I join my voice to so many others in condemning the horrific shooting at a car that led to the death of an innocent child simply because the driver did not comply with security checks.”
“I equally condemn the killing of the gendarme officer who committed the act by the mob, because no one has the right to take away human life,” the Catholic Bishop adds.
He continues, “The Church has always upheld the right to life for every individual. This right flows from the fact that every human person is created in the image and likeness of God (Gen 1:27), and thus possesses human dignity, no matter the circumstances.”
Even when people dishonor the dignity of others, or deprive them of human life by their actions as in the case at hand, Bishop Bibi notes, “we must still recognize their human dignity and right to life, which cannot be lost even by the vilest offence.”
Authorities in Cameroon have condemned the murder of Carolaise and made an appeal for calm following the incident.
The leadership of Cameroon’s Ministry of Defense has been quoted as describing the policeman’s actions as “inappropriate, unsuited to the circumstances and clearly disproportionate to the irrelevant behavior of the driver.”
