Since his exchange with Emmanuel Macron at the Salon de l’Agriculture in February, the activist, founder of the Anti-Sardinards Brigade, fears for his family who remain in Cameroon.

He arrived with a green shirt under his arm. Inside, there were piles of official letters, medical certificates, and reports… These papers are, in a way, his character witnesses, proof of what he claims. Because Abdoulaye Thiam, better known by the nickname Calibri Calibro, has no intention of letting anyone question his truths.

That cool morning and the colorless Parisian sky seemed to match his mood of the day – the interview took place before France’s coronavirus lockdown on March 17th. Even though this 34-year-old man with a powerful build continues to wear an almost innocent smile, he seems troubled. And that’s putting it mildly…

Since February 22nd, his family still in Cameroon has been in hiding. According to him, some relatives have been “attacked by militants of the RDPC,” the Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement, the party of President Paul Biya. “That’s why we must make sure they aren’t found,” insists Abdoulaye Thiam. On Facebook, wanted notices – “with a high reward” – for their capture have multiplied, along with threatening messages. “I didn’t think these people could be so cruel,” he sighs.

What happened on February 22nd that led to such a brutal response? That Saturday, French President Emmanuel Macron was making his way through the Salon de l’Agriculture in Paris when Abdoulaye Thiam called out to him: “Mr. Macron, Paul Biya is killing Cameroonians! Mr. Macron, there’s a genocide in Cameroon!” The head of state pushed through the crowd and approached him. “More than 22 people were burned to death, Mr. Macron,” he said, referring to an attack a few days earlier in the village of Ngarbuh, in Anglophone Cameroon – a region caught in a conflict between separatist groups and the army.

“I know about that,” replied Emmanuel Macron. “I’ve put pressure on Paul Biya to address the Anglophone crisis and his opposition. […] I’m fully aware and totally involved in addressing the violence happening in Cameroon, which is intolerable.”

Filmed on a phone, this unprecedented five-minute exchange between a president and a stranger would be widely shared online. “We showed the world the suffering of Cameroonians,” Abdoulaye Thiam proudly says. “It made quite an impact.” It’s hard to disagree…