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Ogoni! Ogoni!
Ogoni is the land
The people, Ogoni
The agony of trees dying
In ancestral farmlands
Streams polluted weeping
Filth into murky rivers
It is the polluted air
Coursing into luckless lungs
Of dying children
Ogoni is the dream
Breaking the looping chain
Around the drooping neck
Of a shell-shocked landKen Saro-Wiwa
Last Monday Dr. Owens Wiwa, the brother of the Nigerian campaigner, Ken Saro-Wiwa came to York University to speak on behalf of Amnesty International, about the plight of the Ogoni people. Many of you will have heard of Ken Saro-Wiwa and may well remember that this time last year he was executed by the Nigerian government after protesting against Shell’s oil drilling in Ogoniland. Dr. Owens Wiwa, an unassuming and extremely articulate man, is currently speaking to many British universities with the aim of raising awareness about his brother’s story, but more importantly about the struggle which the Ogonis face. He spoke personally about his work and had much to say about the history of his people, the current situation and his hopes for the future of his country.
Ogoniland has a long and turbulent history. Today it comprises of some 500,000 people, inhabiting one hundred and twenty villages in Nigeria, each one surrounded by thick forest, by trees respected for centuries as a living and growing part of each village’s heritage. Dr. Wiwa called them sacred, part of a simple relationship the Ogonis used to have with the natural world around them, a symbiosis extending to the wildlife of the forest too — “one village was friendly with a panther”, he said, “and one used to swim with crocodiles”. He described the security of life that existed for his ancestors, but also the various threats to this that occurred over time. First, slavery. This was stated in blunt terms — “millions of African people sold to provide energy for the West”, but Dr. Wiwa also pointed out how the Ogonis were not in fact forced into slavery, because of the unity of their tribes, meaning village Chiefs refused to sell anybody. After this however, came Colonialism, and the carving up of Africa — different nations held together by force of arms, given names; Liberia, Gambia, Nigeria …. Again though, stated Dr. Wiwa, the Ogoni people refused to sign any treaty with the colonists, violence and bloodshed ensuing. Apartheid was mentioned too, as a trial Africa has come through, most notorious in the South but surfacing across the whole continent. Finally, he came to the dictatorship of Nigeria today, under a military government led by General Sani Abacha, with a poor human rights record.
Having given us an idea of his country’s background, Dr.Wiwa went on to describe the present day problem: “In 1958, Shell came to our land.” Shell, an Anglo-Dutch company, came to drill for the oil that is found in abundance beneath Nigeria. It is the uncalled-for environmental damage that occurred as a result of this that he chose to focus upon, and the disparity between the methods used to extract the oil in Nigeria and in similar, European oil fields. He described how Shell had built roads through the forest, connecting not villages but oil wells, and how pipes were laid close to people’s homes that apparently seeped oil straight onto the land. In addition to this, he spoke of “the gas flares burning full combustion every minute of the day”, poisoning the air with carbon monoxide and methane. Such conditions do not have to be endured on Western oil fields. “There was a time in Ogoni”, said Dr. Wiwa, “when all the streams were polluted, when the schools were closed because the teachers had not been paid for six months, when there were no drugs in the hospitals — but oil was still being produced every day”. $30b of oil have been taken from Ogoniland, but its villages do not yet have electricity or running water.
Next Dr. Wiwa described how the Ogoni’s peaceful struggle against Shell began. In 1989 Ken Saro-Wiwa and his colleagues met together for a conference to discuss what could be done. They put together a bill of rights for the Ogoni people, which was taken to the government but received no acknowledgement. They put their case to organisations such as Amnesty, Greenpeace and the United Nations. Non-violent street demonstrations were held. None of this escaped the notice of Shell who began to monitor Ken Saro-Wiwa’s every movement. Then began the propaganda campaign. Accusations of violence against members of Shell and sabotage of the oil pipes were levelled against the group. Dr. Wiwa was very clear on this point and what it meant for the campaigners: under Nigerian law, anyone found sabotaging the oil equipment would be sentenced to death. The Ogoni people are well-aware of this fact and would in any case be very unlikely to want to sabotage the pipes, since the resulting oil spillage would ruin their homes and crops. Nor too would they resort to violence. “The Ogoni people are poor, but they are not stupid”, Dr. Wiwa stated firmly, “They have studied other campaigns such as the IRA and have found that it is only when violence is renounced that solutions are reached.”
At this point Dr. Wiwa started to talk about the events preceding his brother’s execution. Although obviously a painful subject, he ran through the work that Ken Saro-Wiwa was engaged in; touring around the villages of Ogoniland raising awareness and hope for an answer to the problems which Shell were creating. He spoke of the day Ken was to have visited his own village, but was prevented from entering by one of the many troops whose suspicions had been raised by his presence. The brothers met that day and after hearing Owens expressing worries for his safety, Ken reassured him that the cause was one worth fighting for. Only seven hours later, together with ten other professionals, Ken Saro-Wiwa had been arrested for the murder of four Ogoni chiefs.
Dr. Wiwa then related how, after nine months in prison, his brother’s health was worsening, but that it was receiving no attention. In an attempt to rectify this he managed to secure a meeting with the Managing Director of Shell in Nigeria.
Ken’s treatment was forthcoming, but what about a fair trial, or indeed his release? The Director assured them that everything in his power would be done, but that a sign of “good will” would be required from the Ogoni people. This sign? A press release stating that they would call off the demonstrations as there was in fact no environmental damage being done in Ogoniland. Ken was informed and refused the ‘assistance’.
On November 10th 1995, just over a year ago, Ken Saro-Wiwa was executed. His crime? The peaceful campaign of a writer against the oppressive regime and environmental ruin of his homeland. His trial? Rigged. Several people have taken the witness stand to say that they were bribed by Shell into testifying against him. His message? That we all of us do our part to fight for democracy and to break the alliance between the multinational companies and the dictatorships they uphold.
One of the comments from the floor was from another Nigerian who also believes passionately in the cause of his people. He spoke of us as missionaries; just as Christians took their faith over to Nigeria and proclaimed the good news, so should we all become ‘Environmental Evangelists’, informing those around us of the problems faced in countries such as Nigeria. Owens too urged that the Church take a stand on this issue, preaching that what Shell is doing is evil. He seemed certain that such a stand would change people’s attitudes and opinions. Are we so sure? Do we honestly believe that we can make a difference? If you’re willing to at least try then there are several courses of action you can take:
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Last modified: 25th November 2005