CORRECTED-As violence rages, Cameroon govt in denial, HRW says

(Corrects source of fighter estimates in paragraph 12,
clarifies view on separatists in para 8 in earlier June 7 story)
* Hundreds killed during separatist insurgency
* Civilians abused by both military and separatists - HRW
* Despite overtures, neither side wants peace talks - HRW

By John Irish
PARIS, June 8 (Reuters) - Prospects for talks between
authorities and separatist movements to end escalating violence
in Cameroon's English-speaking region are slim, a senior human
rights official said on Friday, dismissing assertions by both
sides to be open to dialogue.
A separatist insurgency broke out in 2017 following a
government crackdown on peaceful protests in the
English-speaking Northwest and Southwest, which complain of
being marginalised by the French-speaking majority.
Prime Minister Joseph Ngute has said the government would be
willing to talk to the rebels, but would not consider their
demand for secession - a position hardline separatists have said
they will never accept.
Eleven movements representing Anglophone Cameroon, including
the main armed factions, last month said they were willing to
enter mediated discussions with the state.
But almost daily violence from both sides has intensified,
forcing thousands of civilians to seek refuge in Cameroon's
French-speaking regions and neighbouring countries.
"There is no desire for dialogue ... The abuses are coming
from both sides and the civilians are finding themselves in the
middle," Ilaria Allegrozzi, Senior Central Africa Researcher at
Human Rights Watch, told reporters in Paris.
"The position of the government is an almost complete denial
... and there is total impunity for the violence."
Allegrozzi said separatists were not in denial of the scale
of the crisis, but of human rights abuses by their fighters.
The oil, cocoa and timber-producing nation was among western
Africa's most settled until a few years ago.
But the United Nations estimates that, since 2017, about
1,800 people have been killed and more than 530,000 displaced
with 1.3 million in need. Authorities have promised to act over
accusations of rights violations by security personnel.
Allegrozzi, who was refused entry to the country in May over
her research, said divisions amons armed separatist groups could
be an obstacle to form a platform to negotiate, an element the
government was using to its advantage.
She cited an International Crisis Group report putting the
number of separatists fighters at about 2,000-4,000 fighters and
there was evidence that they were acquiring more sophisticated
weaponry.
The crisis has tended to slip beneath the international
radar given President Paul Biya's close cooperation with Western
states in the fight against Islamist militant group Boko Haram
in West and central Africa.
But the United States has become increasingly critical of
the government and the separatist crisis was discussed for the
first time at the U.N. Security Council last month.
Allegrozzi said the Anglophone population was increasingly
in tune with idea of independence. "There is a growing feeling
of support towards the separatists and secession," she said.