By Staff Reporter
Nigeria’s president on Wednesday conferred a posthumous national honour on the late activist Ken Saro-Wiwa and fellow campaigners, 30 years after their execution by the then-military regime.
Saro, along with eight other fellows, popularly referred to as the Ogoni nine, were convicted of murder and later hanged in 1995, sparking global outrage.
The nine activists were convicted by a secret special military tribunal over allegations that they killed four pro-government Ogoni chiefs in 1994.
The chiefs were killed during an intracommunal riot in Ogoniland during the reign of the late junta president Sani Abacha.
Saro-Wiwa was an author and activist who led the Ogoni people to protests against Shell and other oil companies.
They accused the oil companies of polluting the land, barring them from farming and rearing animals.
Their execution prompted suspension from the British Commonwealth in 1995.
Shell and other oil companies have fought legal battles in Nigeria and the UK over oil spills and environmental damage, especially in the Niger Delta region, over the years.
The family of Saro Wiwa and Amnesty International have said that the clemency granted to the Ogoni nine falls short of the justice they needed.
Source: AFP
