Hold Shell accountable for human rights abuses in Nigeria
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Feb 28, 2012
A global coalition of NGOs, human rights monitors, academics and analysts have joined Platform in sending a letter to the Board members of Royal Dutch Shell and Shell Nigeria which holds Shell to account for its role in recent human rights abuses in Nigeria. Below is a short extract from the letter: Today the US...
Top 7 Resources for Kiobel v Shell @ #SCOTUS
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Feb 27, 2012
Tomorrow the Supreme Court of the United States hears Kiobel v Shell, a case that alleges Shell aided and abetted human rights violations and crimes against humanity committed by the Nigerian military against the Ogoni people from 1992 onwards. The case has significance for the global movement for corporate accountability. The outcome in Kiobel will...
The Ugandan draft oil law: A search in vain for accountability and democratic oversight
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Feb 22, 2012
Platform has released a new briefing analysing Uganda’s draft “Petroleum (Exploration, Development and Production) Bill” The report – entitled “The Ugandan Upstream oil law: A search in vain for accountability and democratic oversight”, highlights the lack of parliamentary oversight, transparency, or consultation or involvement of affected communities in the proposed oil law. At the same...
The Big 3: oil co’s and legal cases this month
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Feb 16, 2012
Three of the world’s biggest private oil companies face landmark legal actions this February. Here is a brief run down of the main cases, what they are about and why they matter. 1. US v BP At the centre of the legal fallout from BP’s Deepwater Horizon disaster in April 2010 is a complex civil...
Video: Chevron rig blazes off the coast of Nigeria
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Feb 6, 2012
This disturbing video from Al Jazeera shows what’s left of Chevron’s KS Endeavour gas rig, which exploded on 16 January 2012. Over 20 days later the site is still ablaze and the intense flames and plumes of smoke can be seen from the nearby fishing village. Local community activists released this footage:
What I’m reading about this week
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Jan 31, 2012
Metro: ‘Sustainable’ funds investing millions in oil companies and banks. This article mentions Platform’s work on Shell Nigeria and uses it to question the ethics of investment in oil companies. Heat or Eat? Fuel Poverty Action occupy British Gas headquarters.
Legal Oil, Ethical Oil and Profiteering in the Niger Delta and the Canadian North
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Jan 30, 2012
In this guest blog post, Professor Anna Zalik of York University Canada explores how governments and multinationals criminalise protest and gloss over the environmental injustices of oil extraction. Q: What does the Canadian Government’s fury at opponents of the Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipeline have to do with the Nigerian ‘legaloil’ campaign? A: Both positions are...
Oil, art & human rights links
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Jan 25, 2012
EU oil companies including Shell and Total will be banned from importing and purchasing Iranian oil by new sanctions, reported Reuters. As Iran threatens to retaliate by blocking the Strait of Hormuz, a major artery of global oil shipments, the UK foreign minister William Hague downplayed the likelihood of war.
Chevron oil rig explodes off coast of Nigeria; 2 killed
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Jan 18, 2012
On Monday 16 January at 4.30 to 5am, Chevron's KS Endeavour drilling rig burst into flames, approximately 6 miles off the coast of Nigeria. Two workers are reported missing. The gas rig is still said to be burning for the second day running and is reported to have partially collapsed into the ocean. The cause is...