When the Nigerian writer and activist Ken Saro-Wiwa was murdered in 1995 along with eight other colleagues, his reported final words were: “Lord take my soul, but the struggle continues”.
Saro-Wiwa and the others had been campaigning against Shell’s ecological destruction of Ogoniland. Thirty years ago this month, on January 4 1995, some 300,000 Ogoni, some sixty per cent of the population, peacefully protested against the oil giant’s activities. At the time, it was the largest mobilisation against an oil company worldwide.read more
Nov 8th, 2022
by John Donovan.
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REUTERS
Nigerian widows end their case in the Netherlands against Shell
AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – A group of four widows who had sought to hold Shell liable for damages in the Netherlands after their anti-oil activist husbands were executed by the Nigerian government in 1995 have cancelled further legal proceedings, their lawyer said on Monday.
“Obviously this is not without disappointment and frustration,” said lawyer Channa Samkalden in statement announcing that the widows have cancelled an appeal launched after the Hague District Court rejected their case earlier this year.read more
May 25th, 2022
by John Donovan.
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CNN
Shell escaped liability for oil spills in Nigeria for years. Then four farmers took them to court — and won
By Nimi Princewill and Krystina Shveda, CNN: Updated 1540 GMT (2340 HKT) May 25, 2022
Nigeria (CNN)When Nigerian environmental lawyer Chima Williams launched a lawsuit against oil giant Shell plc, he did not envisage a 13-year battle that would lead to a landmark ruling and land him a prestigious environmental award.
Williams, who is the executive director of the Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria, successfully convinced the Court of Appeal in the Hague that Shell plc was responsible for the activities of its subsidiary in Nigeria — Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC) — and for oil spills that ravaged local farmlands.
The suit against Shell Nigeria was brought by four farmers from the Goi and Oruma communities in the country’s oil-rich but impoverished Niger Delta region, who said their farms were left in ruins after major spills from underground pipelines.
The decision to allow Shell plc, formerly known as Royal Dutch Shell plc, to be sued in this jurisdiction set a precedent as it was the first time the Dutch parent company was sued in its home country for the actions of its foreign subsidiary, SPDC.
Environmental lawyer Chima Williams is the 2022 Africa Goldman Prize winner for his efforts in holding oil giant Shell accountable for oil spills.
Shell Nigeria (SPDC) was eventually held liable for the oil spills and ordered to pay damages to the farmers in a January 29, 2021, ruling by the Court of Appeal of the Hague. SPDC was also ordered to carry out an intensive clean-up of the damage to the communities.
Williams was on Wednesday awarded the Goldman Environmental Prize for his work in holding the company accountable for the environmental damage.read more
Mar 24th, 2022
by John Donovan.
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Nigeria: Dutch court rejects suit of ‘Ogoni Nine’ widows against Shell
The court said there was insufficient evidence to support claims of the families of the activists executed alongside the writer Ken Saro-Wiwa in 1995.
23 March 2022
A Dutch court has thrown out a suit against Shell brought by four widows of activists who were executed by late Nigerian military leader Sani Abacha in 1995 after protests against the company’s exploitation of the oil-rich Niger Delta.
The court said there was not enough evidence to support the widows’ claim that Shell had been involved in bribing witnesses related to the case.
In 2019, the court had handed the widows a rare win in their long-running battle by allowing the case to continue. But it had also said the claimants needed to prove Shell’s liability.
Shell has always denied wrongdoing.
Esther Kiobel, whose husband Barinem Kiobel was among those executed, said she would file an appeal at The Hague.
“We can’t do it in Nigeria because they [the government] are the collaborators,” she said. “I want their [activists] names exonerated. That’s what I want and that’s what I’m fighting for.”read more
Mar 24th, 2022
by John Donovan.
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Amnesty International
The Hague: Esther Kiobel vows to continue her campaign for justice
23 March 2022
Human rights defender Esther Kiobel today lost her civil case against oil giant Shell, which she accuses of complicity in the 1995 execution of her husband by the Nigerian military government, but has promised to continue her campaign for justice. Esther has spent 27 years seeking justice for her husband Dr Barinem Kiobel, who was hanged along with eight other men in connection with widespread protests against oil pollution in the Niger Delta.At a witness hearing in 2019, three men told the Dutch court that Shell and the Nigerian government had given them money and offered them other bribes in order to incriminate Esther’s husband and eight other men, known collectively as the “Ogoni Nine”. But today, the court ruled that there was insufficient evidence to prove that Shell had been involved.
Esther Kiobel brought the case against Shell along with three other women, Victoria Bera, Blessing Eawo and Charity Levula, whose husbands were also executed in 1995. Amnesty International’s research into the historic injustice has revealed how Shell’s requests for ‘assistance’ in handling environmental protests led to a brutal government crackdown, culminating in the arrests and unlawful executions of the women’s husbands, as well as renowned activist Ken Saro-Wiwa and four other men.
“This is a disappointing outcome, but these extraordinarily brave women are not giving up. Their voices have been heard. They should be commended for their resilience and unbreaking commitment to exposing the truth, and for the invaluable work they have done to highlight the global culture of impunity for multinationals accused of human rights abuses,” said Mark Dummett, Head of Business and Human Rights at Amnesty International.
“It has taken years of legal wrangling for Esther Kiobel to get Shell to face her in a courtroom. Shell tried every trick in the book, from disputing jurisdiction to refusing to hand over crucial documents. The fact that it took more than twenty years for a court to hear Esther’s argument is a grim indictment of how corporations are able to evade accountability for terrible crimes and human rights abuses. Despite the ruling today, Esther’s battle for justice has not been in vain – her persistence represents a powerful argument for change. Governments must do more to hold companies accountable for human rights abuses, and make it possible for the victims to seek justice.”
Esther Kiobel fled Nigeria and settled in the US following her husband’s killing. She first filed a case against Shell in New York in 2002, but in 2013 the US Supreme Court ruled that the US did not have jurisdiction to hear the case. In 2017, Amnesty International supported Esther Kiobel, Victoria Bera, Blessing Eawo and Charity Levula in bringing a new case against Shell in the Netherlands. The four plaintiffs accused Shell of being instrumental in the unlawful arrest and detention of their husbands; the violation of their husbands’ physical integrity; and the violation of their right to a fair trial and to life, and their own right to a family life. The case was held up when Shell refused to hand over crucial documents relating to the case, and it was not until 2019 that the District Court of The Hague heard the women’s arguments for the first time.
Amnesty International has extensively detailed Shell’s role in the crackdown in Ogoniland. In a 2017 reportread more
Human rights defender Esther Kiobel today lost her civil case against oil giant Shell, which she accuses of complicity in the 1995 execution of her husband by the Nigerian military government, but has promised to continue her campaign for justice. Esther has spent 27 years seeking justice for her husband Dr Barinem Kiobel, who was hanged along with eight other men in connection with widespread protests against oil pollution in the Niger Delta.read more
Jul 21st, 2021
by John Donovan.
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After two decades of seeking justice, the District Court of the Hague ruled in May 2019 that the case could be heard in The Netherlands. In the ongoing case, the Court is assessing the role that Shell played in the ‘Ogoni Nine’ – among them my husband – being sentenced to death and executed.
Shell has tried to shed its image of corporate killer like a snake would its skin.
Dear Shell: After 25 Years, Are You Finally Ready to Accept Your Role in the Murder of Ogoni 9?
The Ogoni 9 — Ken Saro-Wiwa, Saturday Dobee, Nordu Eawo, Daniel Gbooko, Paul Levera, Felix Nuate, Baribor Bera, Barinem Kiobel, and John Kpuine — were murdered 25 years ago for their campaign against Shell. Photo by Martin LeSanto-Smith.
The fossil fuel giant could have tried to right its wrongs, grave as they were. Instead, it has chosen profit over people, indifference over action.This article originally appeared in OilChange International.ANDY ROWELL: November 12, 2020
And so another grim, painful milestone is reached. It is now a quarter of a century since the Ogoni 9 were murdered in Nigeria.read more
Activists have mounted demonstrations at Shell’s headquarters in London and The Hague, in protest over the killings of the Ogoni 9 in Nigeria, 25 years ago.
Eight activists from Extinction Rebellion Rotterdam climbed a Shell storage tank in Pernis. A spokesman for the group, Marjolein: “Although Shell is obliged to clean up the oil, they appear to be failing to deliver on their promises as always. That is why today we protest at one of Europe’s largest oil refineries: to show that Shell cannot get away with this and to encourage the people in the Ogoni area. ”read more
OGONI REMEMBERS KEN SARO WIWA’S MURDER 25 YEARS LATER AND RENEWS DEMAND FOR AUTONOMY
November 10, 2020
KorneBari Nwike
On November 10, 2020, the Ogoni people, in the homeland and in the diaspora, are poised to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the judicial murder of Ken Saro Wiwa and other Ogoni leaders with renewed calls for Ogoni autonomy. Twenty-five years ago, on November 10, 1995, Gen. Sani Abacha, bolstered by the Justice Ibrahim Auta tribunal and Shell Oil Company, impulsively murdered Ken Saro Wiwa, one of Africa’s finest and eight other Ogoni leaders for demanding Ogoni political autonomy within Nigeria. Ken Saro Wiwa was an acclaimed writer and Africa’s foremost environmentalist who lead the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP).read more
This year is the sad Silver Jubilee of a landmark human rights atrocity.
Today is the 25th anniversary of the death of Dr Barinem Nubari Kiobel who is lovingly remembered every year by his widow Esther Kiobel.
Dr Kiobel was a member of the “Ogoni 9” (which included Ken Saro-Wiwa), all innocent people executed in Nigeria on November 10, 1995, by the murderous Abacha military regime. The regime was closely associated with and actively supported by Shell. read more
Kiobel vs Shell: 4 Nigerian women take on the corporate machine
Wednesday, July 5th, 2017
TOMORROW, a Dutch court will hear witnesses and examine the merits of a landmark case brought by Esther Kiobel and three other women with regard to what they claim was Shell’s involvement in the unlawful arrest, torture and execution of their husbands by the Nigerian military.
This follows a hearing in October 2019, where four people have accused Shell of bribing witnesses to testify against the men during their trial in the 1990s.read more
November the 10th 2020 is the commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the execution of the environmentalist, author Ken Saro Wiwa and 8 others who became known as the Ogoni 9.
More than 25 years ago Filmmaker Nathan Achim Sheppard filmed and conducted an in-depth interview at Ken’s home in London about his life, work and struggle.read more
Ogoni and the Unforgettable History of State Brutality, By Fegalo Nsuke
21 August 2020
The Ogoni is daily in the news with reports of extra judicial killings, persecution, police repression, military torture and all sorts of human rights abuses. The conflict rages as the Nigerian oil industry seeks to adopt unsavoury measures to forcefully resume oil production in the area without the people’s consent.
The Ogoni people have become very familiar with the insincerity of the Nigerian oil industry, forcing a growing cynicism that continually creates distrust and conflict each time the Ogoni issue is mentioned.read more
I wonder if the American Ballet Theatre is aware of the sinister background of its new benefactor, Hakluyt & Co – the corporate intelligence agency sometimes described as the commercial offshoot of MI6.
Titled Shell directors, the late Sir Peter Holmes, and Sir William Purves, were also directors, major shareholders and spymasters of Hakluyt & Company, a UK corporate espionage firm founded by former senior MI6 officers. BP directors were also involved.
Shell used Hakluyt to engage in cloak and dagger operations against its perceived enemies, including Greenpeace, as exposed in a Sunday Times front-page lead article “MI6 ‘firm’ spied on green groups”. Continuing on to an inside page feature headlined “How agent Camus sunk Greenpeace oil protests”. read more
The Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP) wishes to strongly express its concerns over the visit by Shell officials in the company of Nigerian soldiers to Ogoni oilfields yesterday (April 30, 2020).
Eye witness accounts and credible community sources which monitored the activities have it that officials of Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited, a subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell Plc, yesterday visited some communities in Gokana local government including Biara and K-Dere inspecting pipelines in the area in view of possible reactivation of the oilfields for oil production.read more
EBOOK TITLE: “SIR HENRI DETERDING AND THE NAZI HISTORY OF ROYAL DUTCH SHELL” – AVAILABLE ON AMAZON EBOOK TITLE: “JOHN DONOVAN, SHELL’S NIGHTMARE: MY EPIC FEUD WITH THE UNSCRUPULOUS OIL GIANT ROYAL DUTCH SHELL” – AVAILABLE ON AMAZON. EBOOK TITLE: “TOXIC FACTS ABOUT SHELL REMOVED FROM WIKIPEDIA: HOW SHELL BECAME THE MOST HATED BRAND IN THE WORLD” – AVAILABLE ON AMAZON.
JOHN DONOVAN TV DOCUMENTARY INTERVIEW
SHELL EXECUTIVES AT THE CENTER OF A SCHEME TO STEAL $1.3 BILLION FROM NIGERIA’S PEOPLE
SHELL ADMITS DEALING WITH NIGERIAN MONEY LAUNDERER – BBC NEWS
SHELL, ENI AND NIGERIAN OFFICIALS IN OPL 245 CORRUPTION SCANDAL
INVESTIGATION OF OPL 245 NIGERIAN OIL CORRUPTION SCANDAL
DUTCH EARTHQUAKES CAUSED BY SHELL/EXXON
SHELL KILLS FOR OIL IN NIGERIA
SHELL LIED ABOUT CLEANING UP OIL IN NIGER DELTA
SHELL SPIES INFILTRATED NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT
LEGO DROPS SHELL OVER GREENPEACE OIL SPILL VIDEO
SHELL ARCTIC DRILLING ACCIDENTS
SHELL KNEW ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE DECADES AGO
ROYAL DUTCH SHELL FOUNDER SIR HENRI DETERDING, NAZI FINANCIER
JOHN DONOVAN PROMOTIONAL GAMES FOR SHELL AND OTHER CLIENTS
Listen and read proof in audio and transcript form of Shell CEO Ben van Beurden’s cover-up tactics in the OPL 245 Nigerian corruption scandal. The instruction given by him in the covertly recorded call to CFO Simon Henry was at odds with Shell’s claimed core business principles. Cover-up and obstruction, instead of transparency and integrity, says Shell critic John Donovan
Shell energy are woefully inept: Shell energy are woefully inept at proving a proper service
I can't give 0 stars or I would, I can't pay my energy prepay bills no matter how I try. No paypoint cards supplied in nearly 2 months & the shell energy App doesen't work, it takes my money & it disappear's into the ether until my bank returns it 10 days later. The most woefully poor service I've had from any company in 35 years. Date of experience: 19 September 2023
Broadband installed but wont work on PC…: Broadband installed but wont work on PC have spent over 2 hours on 2 occasions with tech support. Charming and polite however!!
Problem not resolved
Date of experience: 19 September 2023
Biggest bullies and scammers I've ever…: Biggest bullies and scammers I've ever come across. They tried to bully me into paying a massive bill when we moved into our new home, I refused and asked them to review...I had to go as far as processing 3 x complaints. However, in the meantime they kept sending threatening letters, they reported against my credit file and
eventually after threats of ombudsman etc they reviewed everything and admitted their mistake
and adjusted the actual figure from when I moved into the house...which was massively different. All the while, refusing to correct my credit file and a couple of weeks later (before I even had the new and adjusted bill) they processed missed payments against my file. We're now taking it legal against them
Date of experience: 16 March 2023
Useless Broadband and customer service: SOOOO shocking, customer service useless and very unhelpful. Kept loosing connection and used all my data up as phone kept leaving the WIFI. They offer a cooling off period of 2 weeks but that 2 weeks is the start up process so its too late once you realise how useless it is. For a global brand we have a very Micky mouse service. We have wasted hours and hours trying to get this sorted and the saga still continues.
AVOID AT ALL COSTS
Date of experience: 16 September 2023
The worst of the lot!: Will never go with this company again. Absolute nightmare and utterly horrid people to deal with. Funny how all their positive 5* reviews mention a specific agent's name. Not sure I have seen more obviously fake reviews in my life - they can't even get that right. Rates are not competitive. No response to complaints, endless errors even for the most basic of tasks, said no account with given number despite having forwarded them the Shell email confirming account no, data leaks - and all this within just a few days of dealing with them. I could not have switched out faster. Octopus Energy = so far amazing! Know what they're doing and do not drain energy and time from its customers.
Date of experience: 14 September 2023
Avoid shell energy at all cost: It is Your mistake/fault if you use this company
Avoid shell energy at all cost
It will be your fault if you join shell energy.
Honestly, If I will have to stop using the Internet at all I will not use Shell energy, and I would rather die from cold or go out and collect wood and come home to use it for cooking or to make my house warm/ heating it than to use shell energy .
They are the worst ever company I have ever dealt with : they are all about money collection nothing more.
Join them and you will pay the price and I assure you will not have time to regret it.
Be careful and stay safe.
Date of experience: 29 July 2023
Just don't. Google another company.: Please use any other service other than shell. I promise you they are not worth it. They refuse to fix issues, hang up on customers when they don't know how to answer basic questions, the relentlessly call you 5+ times a day once you file a complaint. I've never hated a service more. Please leave me alone Shell, you are the worst company and frankly, I cannot wait to get out of my contract with you. I am considering eating the fee just so I never have to speak with this nagging service again. Oh and also, the internet sucks and always disconnects.
Date of experience: 08 September 2023
This is not a Shell website. That fact should be abundantly plain from the overall content of this home page and our sister Shell focussed websites, including shellnazihistory.com. Click on the Disclaimer link at top of this page for more information. You Can Be Sure Shell does not endorse or approve of this website. There are no subscription charges nor do we solicit or accept donations. No advertising is accepted. It is an entirely free to use non-commercial website drawing attention to the negative side of Shell. The Shell logo image with the white text used on this website, as per the above example, is in the public domain because its copyright has expired and its author is anonymous. It can be found here on WIKIMEDIA COMMONS. Use this link for Shell’s own website.
OVER 500 EXTERNAL PUBLICATIONS CITING OUR SHELL WEBSITES
See our link list of over 500 articles by the FT, Wall Street Journal, Reuters, Bloomberg, Forbes, Dow Jones Newswires, New York Times, CNBC etc, plus UK House of Commons Select Committee Hansard records, information on U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission websiteetc. all containing references to our Shell focussed websites, or our website founders Alfred and John Donovan. Includes TV documentary features in English and German, newspaper and magazine articles, radio interviews, newsletters etc. Plus academic papers, Stratfor intelligence reports and UK, U.S. and Australian state/parliamentary publications, also citing our Shell websites. Click on this link to see the entire list, all in date order with a link to an index of over 100 books also containing references to our non-profit websites and/or our activities.
John Donovan, the website owner