Country Cameroon Department Koupé-Manengouba Local time Sunday 4:58 PM | Region Southwest Time zone WAT (UTC+1) | |
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Weather 25°C, Wind W at 5 km/h, 82% Humidity | ||
Tombel is a town and commune in the Southwest Region of Cameroon, in the north of the Mungo Valley. The town is traditionally part of the Bakossi people's country, but now has a significant population of Bamileke people and others.
Map of Tombel, Cameroon
In late 1966 tension between the two communities resulted in an outbreak of violence in which 236 Bamaleke settlers were killed. looting and burning their houses. In response, the army moved in, rounded up all able-bodied Bakossi men in the Tombel area and placed them in detention camps, where many were severely tortured to obtain confessions. Eventually 143 Bakossi men were put on trial and 17 sentenced to death, while 75 received life sentences of life imprisonment.
Lying immediately to the south of Mount Kupe, Tombel receives little direct sunshine, particularly in the rainy season, due to constant cloud cover. The town has suffered from persistent shortages of water supply, despite several forceful attempts by the women of the town to improve the situation.