Tijuana, Mexico – Bekeni Christain Tabasangh was one of dozens of people seeking the shade at the edge of a Tijuana plaza near the foot of the pedestrian bridge crossing into San Diego about a week ago. 

Weeks earlier, he signed up on the list that included the names people waiting in Mexico to request asylum in the United States.

Tabsangh, 33, left Cameroon in August, fleeing violence in the country’s Anglophone regions.

Government forces are battling an armed Anglophone separatist movement in southern Cameroon, including where Tabasangh is from, in the Fako Division. Civilians are also being targeted.

The conflict has killed more than 400 people since last year and forced thousands more to flee, according to rights group and the United Nations.

“I escaped Cameroon because they were looking for youths, killing youths all over,” said Tabasangh told Al Jazeera. 

“When they see you, they will say that we are terrorists. Likewise, the terrorists that are fighting with them, they are somewhere, hiding, so when [government security forces] run into you on the street they will not even ask if you are one of them or not, they will just kill you,” he said.

The government, police and separatists often give conflicting accounts of who is responsible for the killings, but Tabasangh said  police broke down the door of his younger brother’s home and shot him dead. 

“People are dying every day for no good reason. They don’t want the media to expose it,” Tabasangh said.

The long wait

Tabsangh’s wait to enter the US came as thousands of Central Americans, part of a mass exodus, trickled into Tijuana area to sign up on the waiting list to seek asylum in the US. 

Many told Al Jazeera they are fleeing violence, poverty or political persecution. The first of the highly visible groups, originally dubbed caravans and now a self-denominated exodus, left Honduras last month.

More than 5,000 migrants and refugees are now in Tijuana, and most of them are staying in a local stadium complex that is more than 2,000 people over capacity. Subsequent waves of the exodus, largely from Honduras and El Salvador, are making their way up through Mexico.

Baja California state Governor Francisco Arturo Vega is urging migrants and refugees taking part in the exodus to spread out to other ports of entry along the border instead of further concentrating in Baja California, “to alleviate what we have here and to try to address and manage it with more promptness, with more efficiency.”

US President Donald Trump has referred to the exodus as an “invasion”, which has no basis in reality, migrant and human rights organisations say. Furthermore, the US is intentionally creating bottlenecks and long wait times for asylum seekers for no good reason other than to attempt to dissuade people from seeking asylum, according to advocates.

“The US government’s refusal to prepare to receive refugees, which it knew about for some time, has created a humanitarian crisis in Tijuana and other Mexican border cities,” Al Otro Lado border rights project director Nicole Ramos said in a statement this week.

“It is inconceivable that a government, one arguably among the most powerful and wealthiest in the world, chose to install barbed wire and soldiers in place of developing strategies and spaces to process refugees expeditiously, and with the human dignity that all human beings deserve,” she said. 

Lado’s comments have been echoed by other rights groups at the border. The number of individuals who are able to cross into the US to request asylum varies widely from day to day.

US Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) strongly disagrees with any assertions that border officials are intentionally creating backlogs and bottlenecks at ports of entry to dissuade or deter people from seeking asylum.

“CBP processes undocumented persons as expeditiously as possible without negating the agency’s overall mission, or compromising the safety of individuals within our custody,” a CBP spokesperson wrote in an email to Al Jazeera.

“Depending upon port circumstances at the time of arrival, individuals presenting without documents may need to wait in Mexico as CBP officers work to process those already within our facilities,” the spokesperson said.

Trump ramps up threats

Meanwhile, the US government continues to ramp up measures in response to the Central American exodus.

Trump has deployed thousands of active duty troops to border areas and given the military more authority, including for the use of lethal force. 

On Thursday, Trump once again threatened to shut down the border with Mexico, alleging the situation could get out of control.

Trump’s renewed threat will not likely affect Tabasangh, though. After four and a half weeks of waiting, his number was nearly up.

He will take almost no belongings with him. It was a long journey across three continents, including more than 7,500km up through Latin America alone, and almost everything he had brought with him from home was stolen.

When he first left on August 19, he travelled across West Africa to get to Ghana where he flew to Istanbul and then to Colombia. Once arriving in South America, he bussed, boated and trekked from one border and immigration checkpoint to the next. Due to tightened restrictions in Nicaragua, Tabsangh had to trek through dangerous forest routes to avoid checkpoints and border authorities.

“I was robbed terribly. They take my passport, take money from me, take my hand luggage, all my shoes, everything,” he said.

He eventually made it to Mexico, where after spending a week in detention was given a transit permit, one of the only documents Tabsangh carries with him.

Dated October 19, it granted him two weeks to leave the country because until not all that long ago, that is how long it would take to cross all of Mexico and request asylum in the US. When Tabasangh finally crosses the bridge from Tijuana over into the US, his permit will have been expired for more than two and a half weeks.

For those still arriving, the wait could be several months, and some migrants and refugees are starting to become frustrated. A group of roughly 100 people walked towards the San Ysidro port of entry on Thursday in an attempt to pressure for a solution. Hundreds decided to camp out sleeping in the area Thursday night for the same purpose.

Near the foot of the pedestrian bridge over into the US, the sun began to rise Friday over migrants and refugees in the plaza, huddled under blankets for warmth. Others who had arrived before the Central American exodus soon showed up to check if their number was going to be called.

England will probably never encounter a Wallabies side surrounded by such low expectations. Not only have Saturday’s Twickenham visitors omitted the gifted Kurtley Beale and his old mate Adam Ashley-Cooper for breaching the team’s disciplinary code, but their key breakdown threat David Pocock has failed to recover from a neck injury. Michael Cheika has never had a blacker Friday as a head coach.

For his opposite number, Eddie Jones, however, kick-off can hardly arrive quickly enough. Should his team conclude their calendar year in emphatic fashion, the southern hemisphere will be left with much to ponder over their Christmas barbies.

England still have 10 Tests left before they fly to Japan for next year’s World Cup while Cheika’s squad, after eight defeats in 12 internationals this year, have been battling a virus in London this week and are also scraping the Vegemite jar confidence-wise. A one-sided home win and a record sixth successive Cook Cup success would reinforce the northern hemisphere’s gathering momentum.

On paper it will also complete a decent autumn harvest for Jones and his players. Victories over South Africa and Japan, an encouraging one-point defeat to the All Blacks and Manu Tuilagi back fit? Had they been offered that scenario a month ago they would have taken it, even without several bonus dishes of shredded Wallabies.

So why the faint nagging sense that Jones’s squad still have a bit to prove, both to themselves and others? Partly it is because modern Test rugby never stands still: Ireland’s victory over New Zealand cast England’s gallant loss to the same opponents in a less flattering light while Japan’s first-half enterprise and tactical zip made the home side appear sluggish in thought and deed. Being occasional flat-track bullies is not going to win next year’s World Cup.

Could this be the day perceptions are spectacularly transformed? Jones certainly has the horsepower, from the returning bench duo of Tuilagi and Nathan Hughes to the powerful young wing Joe Cokanasiga, centre Ben Te’o and his second-row pairing of Courtney Lawes and Maro Itoje.

If the home team start as purposefully as against the All Blacks, there could even be a rerun of last year’s 30-6 success in this equivalent fixture.

The trouble with England is that no one, themselves included, can say with absolute certainty when the muse will strike. The sure touch Ireland displayed in Dublin last week is not yet a constant England companion and, to date, this has not been the greatest month for several of their senior citizens. Dylan Hartley starts on the bench today, Danny Care – a thorn in the Wallabies flesh last year – is out of the squad entirely while Mike Brown remains unable to reclaim the No 15 jersey from Elliot Daly.

The outstanding November performers have probably been Owen Farrell, Sam Underhill, Maro Itoje, Mark Wilson and Ben Moon: think back to England’s improved second-halves against South Africa and Japan and their striking opening half hour against New Zealand, for example, and the estimable Moon has been on the field every time.

How much Jones would love it, therefore, if Daly can burst into devastating life at full-back, Tuilagi can add fresh dynamism to the midfield, Jamie George plays like a starting Test Lion and Underhill reprises his staggering effort against New Zealand at the expense of Michael Hooper. With a brace of Vunipolas, Ellis Genge, Joe Launchbury, George Kruis, Chris Robshaw, Dan Robson, Anthony Watson, Chris Ashton and Jack Nowell all presently unavailable through injury, it would not only reassure most English supporters that their 2018 wobble was only temporary but set the scene for a spectacular Six Nations championship next year.

What a tournament it could be, with almost every country on the up and no reason to hold anything back. Jones, though, will expect his players to ignore their opening championship fixture against Ireland in Dublin for now and focus entirely on a wounded Australia team he believes should not be underestimated. “This is going to be their best performance of the year,” Jones added. “This is the game they traditionally want to win, against the old foe, the mother country. It’s at Twickenham, it’s their last game of the year, it’s Will Genia’s 100th Test and they’ll be up for it. All previous form goes out the window.”

If anyone understands how the Australian psyche works it is Jones, who knows precisely what emotional buttons Cheika will have been pressing this week. “I used to tell the players they could do something special. They like nothing better than to beat England at Twickenham. They’ll see this as a chance to put everything right. They can go on to the beach and be kings of the southern hemisphere. History dictates that Australia-England is still a pretty special rugby match.”

This time around, though, the strife-torn Wallabies really will have to dig in if their special indigenous jersey, being worn overseas for the first time, is to inspire much Twickenham dreamtime.

England will sniff opportunity at the lineout, look to get the ball into the hands of Jonny May and Cokanasiga early on and examine the Wallabies’ 10-12 combination of Matt Toomua and Bernard Foley. Physically, Jones will also be disappointed if his forwards do not make their presence felt. “Bully is not a good word these days. If I say ‘bully’ I’ll get called up before human resources but we’d certainly like to dominate them. It’s an important psychological area of the game.”

If mind games are never far away in the buildup to this fixture, neither coach can afford to ignore the latest warning from World Rugby that more cards should have been shown this autumn for high tackles and dangerous clear-outs. South Africa’s Jaco Peyper, as a result, is unlikely to be overly lenient should either side’s discipline start to fray. Australia lost a couple of players to the bin 12 months ago and can ill afford to do the same again if Genia, still a class act, is to enjoy his milestone Test.

Ultimately, though, the home side will regard this final series outing as a real chance to round off a mixed calendar year with a rattle. Their coaching panel of Jones, John Mitchell and Scott Wisemantel know their weakened opposition inside-out; what they now want to see is some old-fashioned Anglo-Saxon ruthlessness. If Jones’s England end 2018 strongly, they will feel anything is possible in 2019.

Image: Getty Images/EyeEm

French President Emmanuel Macron has agreed to return “without delay” 26 African artworks claimed by Benin, according to the president’s office.

The decision on Friday came shortly after Macron received a report detailing how former colonisers can return looted artworks to Africa.

Governments from Ethiopia to Senegal eagerly awaited the report, commissioned by Macron and complied by French art historian, Benedicte Savoy, and Senegalese economist Felwine Sarr. 

It recommends that the thousands of items in French museums taken without consent during the colonial period be returned to the continent.

Unless it can be proven that the objects were obtained legitimately, they should be returned to Africa permanently, the report’s authors say.

Savoy and Starr also recommend changing the French law to allow the restitution of cultural works to Africa, after Macron announced that he wanted the process to begin within five years. 

French law currently forbids the government from ceding state property, regardless of how it was obtained. 

“I cannot accept that a large part of the cultural heritage of several African countries is in France,” Macron said during a visit to Burkina Faso last year. 

“There are historical explanations for this but there is no valid, lasting and unconditional justification. African heritage cannot be only in private collections and European museums – it must be showcased in Paris but also in Dakar, Lagos and Cotonou. This will be one of my priorities,” he said.

‘A new era of thought’

At the height of its colonial empire, France controlled large swathes of the African continent, removing art produced there for display in museums in the French capital, Paris, and elsewhere.

Objects that arrived in France went on to influence the work of major figures in European art, such as Spanish artist, Pablo Picasso, and Italian painter and sculptor, Amedeo Modigliani. 

According to the report, about 90 percent of African art is currently housed in museums and private collections outside the continent, including statues, thrones and manuscripts.

There are about 90,000 African artworks in French museums, most of them housed in Paris’ Quai Branly museum, which also boasts a large collection of Asian art.

The museum was established by former French President Jacques Chirac, an avid collector of African art.

While the decision has been welcomed by officials in some African countries, European art dealers have expressed concerns that repatriation will leave some French museums nearly empty.

The dealers have also questioned who the objects should be returned to when many of the kingdoms and civilisations they were taken from no longer exist.

However, the head of Ethiopia’s Authority for Research and Conservation of Cultural Heritage had said the report heralded “a new era of thought” in Europe’s relations with Africa, while Senegal’s culture minister Youssou Ndour said it was “entirely logical that Africans should get back their works”. 

Thorny diplomatic issue

France’s decision could up the pressure on other European governments and museums to return looted artefacts, which can become a diplomatic headache as well as a painful reminder of colonialism. 

According to the AFP news agency, approximately 180,000 African artworks are held in Belgium’s Royal Museum for Central Africa, while 37,000 more are in the Weltmuseum in Austria. 

The British Museum in London is also in talks to return artefacts, looted from the ancient Benin kingdom, to Nigeria, which now occupies the territory. 

This month, a Chilean delegation travelled to the United Kingdom to request the return of artefacts from two London museums.

The UKis also embroiled in a prolonged standoff with Greece over the Elgin Marbles, also known as the Parthenon Marbles, which were removed from Athens in the 1800s.

Museums frequently cite concerns over whether countries have a suitable place to display repatriated treasures, as well as the skills to maintain them.

However, in recent years, some European museums have returned a number of items to their countries of origin. 

In August, the British Museum repatriated a trove of 5,000-year old objects looted from an ancient site in  Iraq  shortly after the United States’ invasion in 2003.

France returned 20 mummified Maori heads to New Zealand in 2012, as part of a repatriation programme of the National Museum of New Zealand, which also secured the return of Maori objects from other countries.

Pakistani authorities have arrested the leader of a religious party which had disrupted daily life with nationwide rallies following the acquittal of a Christian woman in a blasphemy case.

The son of Khadim Hussain Rizvi, leader of the right-wing Tehreek-e-Labbaik (TLP) party, said his father was taken away on Friday in a nighttime raid on his religious school in the eastern city of Lahore.

“Police raided our school and arrested our revered leader,” Saad Rizvi told the Reuters news agency.

The TLP said in a statement that Rizvi was arrested along with scores of supporters, according to a report by The Associated Press.

Rizvi’s TLP was at the forefront of a nationwide protest against the acquittal of Pakistani Christian woman, Aasia Bibi, in a blasphemy case by the country’s Supreme Court last month.

The TLP had demanded Bibi’s public execution, while the party’s founder, Mohammad Afzal Qadri, called for the death of the three Supreme Court judges who ruled to acquit her.

Qadri had also called for the overthrow of the Pakistan government over the controversy.

The protests ended only after the government agreed to a Supreme Court review of Bibi’s acquittal.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan went on the national television to say that the Supreme Court’s decision will be final and upheld.

The chances of the apex court’s acquittal being overturned are slim, according to Bibi’s lawyer, who fled Pakistan following the verdict.

Blasphemy is a massively inflammatory issue in Muslim-majority Pakistan, where even unproven allegations of insulting Islam and Prophet Mohammed can lead to lynchings and murders.

The allegations have led to at least 74 killings in Pakistan since 1990, according to an Al Jazeera tally.

Meanwhile, hardline groups continue to hold sporadic, albeit peaceful, rallies across the country and calling for Bibi’s execution.

The TLP has also vowed to return to the streets if Bibi leaves the country.

The Pakistani government has repeatedly stated that Bibi is being held in a secure location in Pakistan after being released from a prison in central Multan earlier this month.

The exact whereabouts of the 54-year-old woman are unknown. Her family has requested asylum, which has been offered by several countries including Canada, Spain and France.