Abuja, Nigeria — Marking 30 years since the brutal execution of nine leading environmental activists, the Ogoni Nine, Amnesty International is calling on the Nigerian government to fully exonerate the men, who were executed for fighting to protect the Niger Delta from oil giant Shell. The anniversary coincides with the start of COP 30 in Brazil.
The Ogoni Nine, led by writer and activist Ken Saro-Wiwa, were executed in 1995 following a sham trial, bringing international attention to the devastating social, environmental, and economic impacts of oil production in the Niger Delta.
While the Nigerian government granted a pardon in June 2025, Amnesty International says this falls short of the justice the activists and their families deserve.
“The Ogoni Nine were executed for a crime they did not commit,” said Isa Sanusi, Amnesty International’s Nigeria Country Director. “Their friends and family have suffered for decades and deserve full exoneration.”
Esther Kiobel, widow of Dr. Barinem Kiobel, one of the Ogoni Nine, emphasized the importance of clearing her husband’s name.
“My husband was killed like a criminal. All I wanted was for his name to be exonerated – it is what I still want,” she said.
The executions followed a violent crackdown on the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP), which protested against oil spills and gas flaring in Ogoniland. Amnesty International has documented Shell’s role in encouraging the Nigerian military’s actions, including raids on 43 villages in 1994 that led to multiple deaths.
The legacy of oil spills and environmental degradation in the Niger Delta continues to devastate communities. Poorly maintained pipelines and inadequate clean-ups by Shell and other companies have destroyed farmland, contaminated water sources, and left millions struggling to survive in poverty.
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“The execution of these activists set a precedent that allowed oil companies and the government to intimidate communities demanding justice and environmental protection,” Sanusi added.
Despite ongoing pollution, affected communities remain defiant. This year, residents of Ogale and Bille have filed a case against Shell in the UK’s Royal Courts of Justice, seeking cleanup of oil spills that have ravaged their livelihoods. Their case is set to be heard in March 2027.
Amnesty International’s report, Extraction Extinction, to be released on 12 November, highlights the threats fossil fuels pose to life, nature, and human rights. It includes a case study on the Niger Delta and a dedication to the Ogoni Nine.
Amnesty calls on Shell to engage affected communities in meaningful consultations, provide full remediation of environmental damage, and offer adequate compensation, in line with international human rights standards.
Background: The Ogoni Nine included Barinem Kiobel, John Kpuinen, Baribor Bera, Felix Nuate, Paul Levula, Saturday Dobee, Nordu Eawo, Daniel Gbokoo, and Ken Saro-Wiwa. They were executed after a flawed trial for allegedly being involved in murders, though their true “crime” was challenging Shell’s environmental destruction in Ogoniland.