Amnesty International says Shell, oil giant, is
complicit in the unlawful arrest, detention and
execution of Ken Saro-Wiwa, human rights activist,
and eight other men by the Abacha military
government in November 1995.
The organisation said the allegation against Shell
followed the launch of “an explosive new case against
the company in the Netherlands over four of the
executions”.
It said the civil case was brought by Esther Kiobel, the
widow of Barinem Kiobel, and three other women.
Kiobel has pursued Shell for 20 years over the death of
her husband who was hanged along with Saro-Wiwa,
and seven other men, collectively known as the Ogoni
Nine.
Kiobel accuses Shell of complicity in the unlawful
arrest and detention of her husband; the violation of
his personal integrity; the violation of his right to a fair
trial and his right to life, and her own right to a family
life.
Amnesty International supported Esther’s legal team
to bring the case to the Netherland and has released a
new briefing, In the dock, detailing the role played by
Shell in the executions.
“The executions of the Ogoni Nine shocked the world.
Shell has been dodging accountability for its
complicity in these deaths for more than twenty years
but now, thanks to Esther Kiobel’s determination and
bravery in taking on this corporate Goliath, the past is
finally catching up with it,” Audrey Gaughran, senior
director of research at Amnesty International, said in a
statement on Thursday.
“Today is a watershed moment in Esther Kiobel’s
uphill battle for justice. Shell has to answer for the
bloody footprints it left all over Ogoniland.”
A brutal campaign
Detailing events leading to the executions, the human
rights watchdog said: “The executions were the
culmination of a brutal campaign by Nigeria’s military
to silence the protests of the Movement for the Survival
of the Ogoni People (MOSOP), led by Ken Saro-Wiwa”.
“MOSOP said that others had grown rich on the oil that
was pumped from under their soil, while pollution from
spills and gas flaring had ‘led to the complete
degradation of the Ogoni environment, turning [their]
homeland into an ecological disaster’. In January
1993, MOSOP declared that Shell was no longer
welcome to operate in Ogoniland.”
“The military authorities responded to the MOSOP
protests with force, committing numerous serious
human rights violations including killings, torture and
rape.
Amnesty International said Kiobel was bringing a civil
case along with Victoria Bera, Blessing Eawo and
Charity Levula, whose husbands were executed along
with hers, and that the claimants are demanding
damages for harm caused by Shell’s unlawful actions,
and a public apology for the role that the company
played in the events leading to the deaths of their
husbands.
“In May 1994, four Ogoni chiefs known to be
opponents of MOSOP were murdered. Without
presenting any evidence, the government blamed
MOSOP and arrested scores of people, including Ken
Saro-Wiwa and Barinem Kiobel,” it recalled.
“Kiobel was not a member of MOSOP, but had a senior
government position and had been critical of the
military’s actions in Ogoniland. He said he had tried to
stop the murders – a version of events that was
supported by evidence presented at the trial. Amnesty
International considered Ken Saro-Wiwa and Barinem
Kiobel prisoners of conscience, detained and ultimately
killed for their peacefully held views.
“After the arrests, at least two prosecution witnesses
came forward to say that they had been bribed by the
government to incriminate the accused, including with
offers of jobs at Shell, and that Shell’s lawyer was
present when they were bribed. Shell has always
denied these claims.
“Many of the Ogoni men arrested on suspicion of
involvement in the murder of the four chiefs suffered
repeated torture and other ill-treatment while detained.
Even after the start of the trial, the military commander
responsible for the incarceration allowed consultations
between defendants and their lawyers only by prior
arrangement with him, and usually only in his
presence. Relatives said they were assaulted by
soldiers when trying to visit the defendants.”
The organisation said Kiobel alleged that, while visiting
her husband in prison, she was assaulted by a military
commander and spent two weeks in detention where
she was denied food and water.
TheCable
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