it's not just Covid. this is from yesterday.....
Africa's most prominent soccer championship, the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), has twice been pushed forward.
The first postponement was because Cameroon was deemed unprepared to host the games, and the second was because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) — Africa's soccer governing body — is now being asked if the escalating violence in the country's Anglophone regions poses too great a threat to spectators and team safety. A vicious civil war has been raging in Cameroon's English-speaking areas, whose people make up 20% of the Central African country, since September 2017.
The clashes are between Cameroonian government forces and armed separatist groups.
Parties on both sides of the conflict committed widespread human rights violations in 2020, including extrajudicial or summary executions and mass murders in Cameroon's Anglophone regions, a report by Human Rights Watch found.
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There are now mounting calls to delay the AFCON competition until the warring parties call for a ceasefire and enter peace negotiations.
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Given the increasing attacks on civilians, the Confederation of African Football may come under pressure to postpone the tournament until President Paul Biya's regime attends peace talks.
Moreover, during AFCON, the deteriorating security situation would pose risks to players on and off the pitch.The Cameroon authorities allegedly wish to host AFCON because of its status this will confer on them, on the continent and beyond.
https://www.dw.com/en/opinion-postpone-the-afcon-in-cameroon-due-to-the-anglophone-crisis/a-59979021
