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Today, a court in the Hague will consider for the first time whether Royal Dutch Shell can be held liable for destroying the livelihoods of four villagers in the Niger Delta.
Among the plaintiffs is Chief Barizaa, an Ogoni elder, who spoke of how oil spills from a Shell pipeline devastated his land in 2005 and caught fire, leaving him destitute:
“I lost everything… the oil flowed into my fishponds and killed all my fish. The five canoes I had in the creeks were consumed by the inferno. I have nothing left to feed my family… I hope the court in the Netherlands can compel Shell to do the right thing.”
With your ongoing support we can increase the pressure on Shell to clean up its spills and stop the environmental devastation in Nigeria. We are inspired to be a part of ShellGuilty, a global campaign by Friends of the Earth, Oil Change International and PLATFORM to hold Shell accountable for its ongoing abuses in the Niger Delta.
Thank you for supporting PLATFORM’s remember saro-wiwa project in this eventful year. Together, we can demand real change.
Please read on to find out more about the case, and what we’re planning in 2010…
Breaking News
Villagers in Ikot Ada Udo survey the damage caused by a Shell well head that sprayed toxic oil and gas onto their farmland in August 2006 and August 2007.
Twenty-one weeks after Wiwa v Shell exposed Shell’s involvement in human rights abuses in the Niger Delta, the oil giant faces another court case – this time in The Hague, a short walk from Shell’s global headquarters. The company will be charged with causing massive oil spills that resulted in damage to land and livelihoods in the oil-rich Niger Delta.
This groundbreaking legal action is being brought by Nigerian plaintiffs in conjunction with Friends of the Earth Netherlands, and begins its first hearing today.
Find out more about the case, the plaintiffs and key documents here.
Shaping the Future
London paid tribute to Ken Saro-Wiwa with a spectacle of light and fire, courtesy of lighting specialist Hansjörg Schmidt of Rose Bruford College and his students. The event brought together Maria Saro-Wiwa, (Ken’s widow), fellow Ogoni, Eno Usua and Doreen Lawrence, mother of Stephen Lawrence, to mark the 14th anniversary of the execution of Ken Saro-Wiwa and his colleagues on 10 November 1995.
remember saro-wiwa rallied local support for a PLATFORM residency, Shaping the Future, which will bring together global artists, performers and activists to collaborate with young people at the Stephen Lawrence Centre. In partnership with African Writers Abroad we will be bringing high profile writers and artists to join the programme.
Shaping the Future will produce a high quality education resource which highlights key areas of PLATFORM’s artistic and campaigning work, including the legacy of writer and activist, Ken Saro-Wiwa.
Expect to see a host of activities, including more public art and events in and around the Centre.