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Nearly fifteen years after writer-activist Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight others were executed, Royal Dutch Shell has agreed to pay a $15.5 million settlement for alleged human rights abuses and environmental contamination in Nigeria. The families of the nine anti-oil activists who were executed by the Nigerian military government in 1995 filed a lawsuit against the oil giant, claiming the company was complicit in the fatal decision.
Shell is accused of committing atrocities against the Ogoni people of the Niger Delta in the 1990s, including hiring government troops to shoot at protesting villagers, supplying Nigerian police with weapons, and helping the government silence human rights and environmental rights activists, including Saro-Wiwa and his colleagues. There is currently another lawsuit pending that alleges Shell's human rights abuses in Nigeria.
Although Shell denies complicity in the executions, as well as other human rights abuses and environmental damage, the company claims that the settlement is part of a "process of reconciliation."
The case against Shell is brought under the U.S. Alien Tort Statute, which allows anyone to bring a case of rights abuse to U.S. courts, even if the crimes took place outside of the United States. Because "the settlement is one of the largest payouts agreed by a multinational corporation charged with human rights violations," many activists view it as a step towards corporate accountability and social action.
The settlement money will not only compensate the families and pay for years of legal fees, but will also "create a trust that will invest in social programs in the country". Kiisi was established "to support educational, community and other initiatives in the Niger delta."
In 1990, Ken Saro-Wiwa helped form the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP), an organization that held non-violent protests to bring attention to the environmental damage caused by the oil industry. Nigeria's military ruler Sani Abacha charged the "Ogoni Nine" with the murder of four local leaders from a rival faction. After a controversial trial, Saro-Wiwa and the others were found guilty and hanged.
* "Shell Settles Nigeria Deaths Case" BBC News. 8 Jun 2009.
* Pilkington, Ed. "Shell Pays Out $15.5m Over Saro-Wiwa Killing" The Guardian (UK). 8 Jun 2009.
* Amunwa, Ben. "Royal Dutch Shell Forced To Settle Human Rights Case Out Of Court" Remember Saro-Wiwa. Press Release. 8 Jun 2009.
Shell is accused of committing atrocities against the Ogoni people of the Niger Delta in the 1990s, including hiring government troops to shoot at protesting villagers, supplying Nigerian police with weapons, and helping the government silence human rights and environmental rights activists, including Saro-Wiwa and his colleagues. There is currently another lawsuit pending that alleges Shell's human rights abuses in Nigeria.
Although Shell denies complicity in the executions, as well as other human rights abuses and environmental damage, the company claims that the settlement is part of a "process of reconciliation."
The case against Shell is brought under the U.S. Alien Tort Statute, which allows anyone to bring a case of rights abuse to U.S. courts, even if the crimes took place outside of the United States. Because "the settlement is one of the largest payouts agreed by a multinational corporation charged with human rights violations," many activists view it as a step towards corporate accountability and social action.
The settlement money will not only compensate the families and pay for years of legal fees, but will also "create a trust that will invest in social programs in the country". Kiisi was established "to support educational, community and other initiatives in the Niger delta."
In 1990, Ken Saro-Wiwa helped form the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP), an organization that held non-violent protests to bring attention to the environmental damage caused by the oil industry. Nigeria's military ruler Sani Abacha charged the "Ogoni Nine" with the murder of four local leaders from a rival faction. After a controversial trial, Saro-Wiwa and the others were found guilty and hanged.
* "Shell Settles Nigeria Deaths Case" BBC News. 8 Jun 2009.
* Pilkington, Ed. "Shell Pays Out $15.5m Over Saro-Wiwa Killing" The Guardian (UK). 8 Jun 2009.
* Amunwa, Ben. "Royal Dutch Shell Forced To Settle Human Rights Case Out Of Court" Remember Saro-Wiwa. Press Release. 8 Jun 2009.