1961 British Cameroons referendum

Referendum that joined British Cameroons to Nigeria and Cameroon April 2023 a) Do you wish to achieve independence by joining the independent Federation of Nigeria or,b) Do you wish to achieve independence by joining the independent Republic of Cameroon? British Cameroon Northern Cameroons Federation of Nigeria 59.97 Republic of Cameroon 40.03 Southern Cameroons Federation of Nigeria 29.50 Republic of Cameroon 70.50 A United Nations referendum was held in the British Cameroons on 11 February 1961 to determine whether the territory should join neighbouring Cameroon or Nigeria. This followed an earlier plebiscite in the Northern Cameroons in 1959 which voted to postpone a decision. The option of full independence was not on the ballot, having been opposed by Andrew Cohen, the UK representative to the UN Trusteeship Council, as well as African and anti-colonial delegations, notably by E. M. L. Endeley, who favoured independence by joining Nigeria, and John Ngu Foncha, who favoured independence by joining Francophone Cameroon.Negotiating an Anglophone Identity Nyamnjoh Francis Brill 2003 9004132953 Leiden, the Netherlands 15 The Muslim-majority Northern Cameroons saw a majority of 60% in favour of joining Nigeria, whilst the Christian-majority Southern Cameroons saw 70.5% in favour of joining Cameroon.Dieter Nohlen, Michael Krennerich, & Bernhard Thibaut (1999) Elections in Africa: A data handbook, p. 177 0-19-829645-2 Northern Cameroon officially became Sardauna Province, a part of the Northern Region of Nigeria, on 1 June, whilst the Southern Cameroons became West Cameroon, one of the two federated states of the Federal Republic of Cameroon, on 1 October. Results ChoiceNorthern CameroonsSouthern CameroonsVotes%Votes%Independence by joining Cameroon97,65940.0233,57170.5Independence by joining Nigeria146,29660.097,74129.5Invalid/blank votes – –Total243,955100331,312100Registered voters/turnout292,985 349,652Source: Nohlen et al., African Elections Database https://web.archive.org/web/20200425080549/http://africanelections.tripod.com/referenda.html#1961_British_Cameroons_Plebiscite 25 April 2020 References Further reading Nicodemus Fru Awasom. "The Reunification Question in Cameroon History: Was the Bride an Enthusiastic or a Reluctant One?” Africa Today 47, no. 2 (2000): 91–119. http://www.jstor.org/stable/4187333. British Cameroons Referendum Category:Referendums in Cameroon Category:Referendums in Nigeria Category:British Cameroon Category:Election and referendum articles with incomplete results Category:Border polls Category:1961 elections in the British Empire