Cardinal Pietro Parolin jetted into Bamenda on Saturday in the heart of a lockdown imposed by separatists. When he flew out of Bamenda on Sunday, he had delivered his message of peace, dialogue, and reconciliation to the population and authorities.

Cardinal Pietro Parolin’s visit to Cameroon runs from January 28 to February 3. The Vatican Secretary of State met with President Paul Biya on Friday, shortly after a meeting with Bishops.

“I had a cordial conversation with Vatican’s Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin who delivered a message of peace from His Holiness Pope Francis,” President Biya said.

Local media in Cameroon had reported that the cardinal will likely use his visit to work towards the resolution of the dispute known as the Anglophone crisis raging in the minority English-speaking North West and South West Regions.

Coming out of his meeting with President Biya, Cardinal Pietro Parolin said relations between the Vatican and Cameroon are cordial. He said they discussed a number of issues including the crisis in the troubled North West and South West Regions.

His words: “It is a message of peace. We talked especially about the situation in the North West and South West Regions of Cameroon. I assured the President of the willingness of the Catholic Church and of the bishops of the troubled regions to give a contribution to a solution to this conflict.

“We are looking for reconciliation and peace especially in this president situation where there are many other crises including COVID-19. It is important to achieve peace. It is the only condition to grow and achieve sustainable development everywhere.”

Cardinal Pietro Parolin arrived Bamenda on Saturday and held a meeting with bishops and priests of the ecclesiastical province. On Sunday, he celebrated a Holy Mass that saw the imposition of the pallium on His Grace Andrew Fuanya Nkea, Archbishop of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Bamenda.

In his message in Bamenda, Cardinal Parolin asked separatist fighters to drop their arms. He went on to recommend dialogue, and reconciliation as solutions to the Anglophone crisis.

Both the Holy See and the local Church have appealed for dialogue to end the strife. One of the Catholic leaders who has played an active role in seeking a resolution is Cardinal Christian Tumi, who was kidnapped by gunmen in Cameroon’s Northwest Region on November 5, 2020.

A video published on social media showed the 90-year-old cardinal calmly responding as one of his captors confronted him about his calls for separatist fighters in Cameroon to lay down their arms. To this, the cardinal responded: “I will preach what is the truth with pastoral conviction and biblical conviction.”

“Nobody has the right to tell me to preach the contrary because I was called by God,” Cardinal Tumi said. His kidnappers released him on November 6.

When gunmen attacked Mother Francisca International Bilingual Academy, a school in Kumba in Cameroon’s Southwest region, on October 24 and opened fire on students in a classroom. Seven students aged 10 to 14 were killed.

Pope Francis prayed on October 28 that “the tormented regions of the northwest and southwest of [Cameroon] may finally find peace.”

Cardinal Parolin leaves Cameroon on Wednesday.