Shell To Pay Out $15.5 Million To Settle Landmark Lawsuit Over Death of Nigerian Activist Ken Saro-Wiwa

The oil giant Royal Dutch Shell has agreed to pay a $15.5 million dollar settlement to avoid a trial over its alleged involvement in human rights violations in the Niger Delta. The case was brought on behalf of ten plaintiffs who accused Shell of complicity in the 1995 executions of Nigerian writer and environmentalist Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight others. Ken Saro-Wiwa was the founding member and president of MOSOP, the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People, a group committed to use nonviolence to stop the repression and exploitation of the Ogoni and their land by Shell and the Nigerian government.

Shell was accused of working closely with and financing the Nigerian military government to brutally quell the peaceful resistance against its presence. The plaintiffs had promised to unveil extensive evidence of Shell"s complicity in the killings during the trial.

The case was brought under the US Alien Torts Claim Act and the Torture Victim Protection Act, which allows foreigners to file cases against Americans for crimes committed abroad. The settlement caps a legal battle that began 13 years ago, one year after Ken Saro-Wiwa’s murder. The plaintiffs say they’ll put $5 milion dollars of the settlement money towards a trust fund benefiting the Ogoni people.

Shell did not respond to our interview request. But in a statement, the company said the settlement does not mean it admits to any wrongdoing. Malcolm Brinded, head of the Shell"s exploration and production unit, said: “Shell has always maintained the allegations were false. While we were prepared to go to court to clear our name, we believe the right way forward is to focus on the future for Ogoni people, which is important for peace and stability in the region.”

Judith Brown Chomsky, cooperating attorney with the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) and a lead attorney in the case against Shell.

Related Democracy Now! Stories

• Shell on Trial: Landmark Trial Set to Begin Over Shell’s Role in 1995 Execution of Nigerian Human Rights Activist Ken Saro-Wiwa (5/26/2009)
• Massive Casualties Feared in Nigerian Military Attack on Niger Delta Villages (5/21/2009)

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