Ogoni Clean Up is Nigeria’s Ridiculous Image Laundering and Hypocritical Oil Resumption Programme read more

The MOSOP President said the gradual militarization of Ogoniland only remind the Ogoni people of the evil Shell and  Nigeria have done to us in the past which led to the death of over 4,000 Ogonis.

MOSOP STATEMENT

The Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP) says it is becoming increasingly clear that the Nigerian government is not bothered about the genocide against the Ogoni people in Nigeria.

Speaking in Bodo, Gokana local government area of Rivers State on Sunday, March 17, 2019, president of MOSOP, Fegalo Nsuke said the Nigerian government does not care about the poor living conditions in Ogoniland. He accused the Nigerian government of using the Ogoni cleanup program to deceive the people while their real intention is to resume oil production in the area without the consent of the Ogoni people. read more

…peace-loving Ogoni citizens whose lives have been rendered miserable by years of state repression and environmental devastation from Shell’s long years of pollution.

MOSOP Rejects Oil Resumption, NNPC/NPDC Take Over of Ogoni Oilfields

Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP) wishes to express its strong rejection of the directive by the Nigerian President for the NNPD/NPDC takeover of Ogoni oilfields and the resumption of oil production in Ogoni as reflected in a communication by the Chief of Staff to the President Abba Kyari.

Indeed, it is appalling that despite the severe impact this directive will have on the lives of the Ogoni people, this decision had been taken without consultations with the Ogoni people nor were our inputs sought in such a crucial issue that affect our lives. read more

Mark Robinson

Last week, Royal Dutch Shell (RDSB) revealed that it is facing charges in the Netherlands relating to corruption allegations surrounding a Nigerian oil bloc called OPL 245. Shell and Italian major ENI SpA (ENI.IM) acquired the licence in 2011 for around $1.3bn (£992m), but it’s alleged that a significant proportion of the monies was destined for use as kickbacks for politicians and officials, with former Nigerian oil minister Dan Etete – a convicted money launderer – acting as the principal intermediary. Although the funds were paid to the Nigerian government, it’s claimed that they found their way into the coffers of Malabu Oil and Gas — a company linked to Mr Etete. read more

By MOSOP Ogoniland

President of the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP), Fegalo Nsuke, has described the conduct of Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria, a subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell, in Ogoniland as a national shame and crime against humanity.

The MOSOP president Fegalo Nsuke made the assertion in K-Dere in Gokana local government area on Wednesday while conducting journalists around oil spill sites in the Ogoni.

Nsuke said in a country where citizens health and welfare were taken seriously, the oil mining license of Shell should have been withdrawn. read more

Esther Kiobel poses with a picture of her late husband, one of nine men executed by Nigeria’s military government after a peaceful uprising against Shell in 1995. Photograph: Amnesty International

By John Donovan

I heard from a major news organisation that Esther Kiobel brought up my name several times during an interview at the Dutch court hearing yesterday, kindly expressing her thanks for my help.

Esther approached me after the US Supreme Court decision that thwarted on jurisdiction grounds her attempts to sue Shell in the USA for complicity in the murder of her husband, Dr Barinem Kiobel. It took over a decade of litigation to arrive at that decision. read more

Mike Corder 12 Feb 2019

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The widow of a Nigerian activist executed by their country’s government more than two decades ago accused oil giant Shell of complicity in his death at a civil case in a Dutch court Tuesday.

“Shell came into my life to make me a poverty-stricken widow,” Esther Kiobel told judges at a one-day hearing.

“With this case I seek justice for my murdered husband so that he can be exonerated from a crime he never committed,” she added. read more

ESTHER Kiobel, one of the widows of the nine environmental activists that were hanged by the Nigerian Military government in 1995, has given testimony in the court case she filed against Shell, an international oil company, over the killing of her husband.

Kiobel and three other widows whose husbands were also among those executed accuse Shell of complicity in the execution of their husbands, and they want the Netherlands-based oil giant to pay them compensation.

Following her husband’s execution, Kiobel said she had to flee to the United States under a refugee programme later became a citizen. The three other women joining her in the suit were not granted visas to travel to attend the court proceedings. read more

By Umar Ali: 12 FEBRUARY 2019

Judges in The Hague, Netherlands will begin hearing a case against Shell on Tuesday, with the oil company facing allegations of complicity in a number of human rights violations in Nigeria.

They will hear testimonies from four women of the Ogoni people, who hold Shell partly responsible for the execution of their husbands by the Nigerian military in 1995.

Nine men, including protest leader Ken Saro-Wiwa, were executed by the Nigerian military regime. The “Ogoni Nine” were outspoken critics of Shell’s operations in Ogoniland, a 1,000km² kingdom in southern Nigeria, and the plaintiffs claim that Shell encouraged the Nigerian Government to unlawfully detain and execute these men. read more

By Kelly Gilblom: 12 February 2019, 17:35 GMT: Updated on 13 February 2019, 00:01 GMT

*Hague court hearing if Shell was complicit in Nigeria killings

*Widow of executed Nigerian man brings a case to the Netherlands

A two-decade fight over whether Royal Dutch Shell Plc contributed to the execution of nine Nigerian oil-industry critics has landed at the company’s doorstep.

A court in The Hague, Netherlands heard its first arguments on Tuesday, as part of determining if Shell played any role when the military dictatorship ruling Nigeria convicted nine men, including well-known activist Ken Saro-Wiwa, of murder and then executed them in 1995. read more

Amnesty International sign: Esther Kiobel standing outside Dutch Court building 12 February 2019

Declaration of Esther Kiobel

Hon. (Dr) Barinem Nubari Kiobel was a man with a prodigy with refined heart that cared for others. A kind-hearted man that was selfless. He was a wonderful husband, a God-fearing man, good Father, brother and a best Friend. He was the finest definition of refinement, consummate technocrat and upright character. He has been very much missed and will always be remembered. read more

Graeme Gallagher | Contributor: 21 Feb 2019

The Royal Dutch Shell Oil Company is on trial for complicity in the death of four Nigerian activists over 20 years ago, according to Amnesty International.

The wives of those four activists — Esther Kiobel, Victoria Bera, Blessing Eawo and Charity Levula — are all demanding compensation and an apology for the death of their husbands in a civil case that started on Tuesday in The Hague, Netherlands.

The four husbands were part of nine activists who were hanged by the military regime due to their massive protests against oil pollution in the Nigerian Ogoniland in 1995. The case brought by the four women accuses Shell of being complicity with the executions.

“These women believe that their husbands would still be alive today were it not for the brazen self-interest of Shell, which encouraged the Nigerian government’s bloody crackdown on protesters even when it knew the human cost,” said Mark Dummett, business and human rights researcher at Amnesty International.

The four plaintiffs are accusing Shell of the unlawful detention of their husbands, the violation of their husbands’ integrity, the violation of the right to a fair trial and to life, and their own right to a family life, according to the Amnesty report. In addition, the plaintiffs are calling for the court to order Shell to hand over more than 100,000 related documents to the case.

The Dutch-based oil company has denied these allegations.

“We have always denied, in the strongest possible terms, the allegations made in this tragic case,” Shell said in a statement. “The Shell Petroleum Development Company did not collude with the authorities to suppress community unrest, it in no way encouraged or advocated any act of violence in Nigeria, and it had no role in the arrest, trial and execution of these men.”

Kioble and Victoria Bera were in court today, with the other two being unable to make it due to denied visas.

“The abuses my family and l went through are such an awful experience that has left us traumatized to date without help,” wrote Kiobel in a written statement.  “We all have lived with so much pain and agony, but rather than giving up, the thought of how ruthlessly my husband was killed … has spurred me to remain resilient in my fight for justice.”

Kiobel has been fighting since she first filed her case in 2002. The U.S. Supreme Court, however, ruled that it had no jurisdiction in the case in 2013, in which the court never fully examined the allegations. Amnesty International has helped Kiobel’s legal team bring the case to the Netherlands in 2017.

“It’s time to bring an end to decades of impunity for Shell,” said Dummett, “These women’s courage, resilience and determination to clear their husband’s names and bring Shell to account is inspirational. They have the support of Amnesty International activists all over the world.” read more

12 Feb 2019

The widow of a Nigerian activist suing oil giant Shell over the execution of her husband says his death left her “traumatised” and “poverty-stricken”.

Esther Kiobel is testifying in court in The Hague, demanding compensation from the Netherlands-based firm.

She is among four women who accuse Shell of being complicit in the hanging of their husbands by Nigeria’s military in 1995. Shell denies the allegation. read more

Nsuke had been a known and outstanding critic of Shell and advocate of self-determination for Ogoni. He served as publicity secretary in the last executive.

MOSOP President Fegalo Nsuke

In what turned out to be an emotional speech, the new president of the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP) Fegalo Nsuke has rekindled hope for a free Ogoni in Nigeria. Nsuke in an address this morning to the Ogoni people said freedom for the Ogoni people in Nigeria must be pursued vigorously. The speech followed his assumption
of office as the new MOSOP president at the expiration of the tenure of the previous executives yesterday December 31, 2018.

In a new year message to the Ogoni people this morning, Nsuke said: read more

Their hope and expectations were that Saro-Wiwa’s hanging would silence the Ogoni people and send signals to the rest of Nigeria’s Niger Delta about what awaits anyone who raises questions about the unfair and inhuman distribution of the wealth of the people of the Niger Delta.

By Fegalo Nsuke

Ogoni, the people and the land represent an oppressed nationality, a people persecuted by their own government for seeking respect for their human and environmental rights especially over their natural endowments, a people whose government have authorized its armed forces to unleash on them, unimaginable brutality with assurances that military crimes against the Ogoni people will never be questioned nor punished.

Over 4,000 Ogonis have been killed since 1993 in state-sponsored terrorism and quite regrettably, no one has been prosecuted, punished or indicted in the Ogoni saga. read more

IMAGE INSERTED BY JOHN DONOVAN

Even after his arrest, Kiobel bravely campaigned to improve conditions in his home area, writing to Komo to appeal for a military withdrawal from Gokana (in Ogoniland) because of “indiscriminate shootings, killing of innocent persons.” 

Extracts from pages 35 & 36 of an Amnesty International document entitled: “A CRIMINAL ENTERPRISE? SHELL’S INVOLVEMENT IN HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS IN NIGERIA IN THE 1990s”

Ken Saro-Wiwa: Before launching MOSOP, Ken Saro-Wiwa, from Bane in Ogoniland, was a successful writer. From 1985-90, some 30 million Nigerians tuned in every week to Basi and Company, a comedy-drama he wrote for Nigerian TV.152 Several of his books won international acclaim, including Sozaboy: A Novel in Rotten English, and On a Darkling Plain.153 The prosecution accused Ken Saro-Wiwa of inciting his supporters to kill the four chiefs meeting at Giokoo. It claimed that shortly before the attacks, he told a group of supporters “to deal with the “vultures.”154 The only witnesses to allege this, Charles Danwi and Nayone Akpa, subsequently signed alleging that the government and Shell had bribed them to make false statements (see above.)155 Ken Saro-Wiwa denied the accusation.156 read more