Thirty years after the Nigerian government executed writer and environmentalist Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight other Ogoni leaders, rights groups and activists are again demanding full exoneration for the men – not a pardon – and accountability for the oil companies linked to their deaths.
In separate statements released on November 10, Amnesty International and Right Livelihood, a global advocacy group, said justice for the Ogoni Nine remains elusive decades after their 1995 execution by Nigeria’s then-military regime for protesting oil pollution in the Niger Delta.
The nine men were hanged after what international observers condemned as a sham trial. They were accused of involvement in the murder of four local chiefs but were, in fact, leading a non-violent campaign against environmental devastation caused by Shell’s operations in Ogoniland.
In June 2025, President Bola Tinubu announced their pardon.
Amnesty International said the presidential pardon of the Ogoni Nine “fell short” of justice.
“While their pardon was a step forward, the Ogoni Nine deserve full exoneration. These men were executed for a crime they did not commit,” said Isa Sanusi, Amnesty International’s Nigeria Country Director. “Their friends and family have been through enough, and they deserve justice.”
Amnesty also urged the government to clear their names and to ensure oil firms are held accountable for decades of pollution that have left millions in the Niger Delta impoverished. The organization accused Shell of encouraging military action against protesters in 1994 that led to mass killings in Ogoni villages.
“The execution of these activists gave oil companies and the government license to intimidate those demanding justice,” Sanusi added.
Esther Kiobel, widow of Dr. Barinem Kiobel – one of the Ogoni Nine – said her struggle for justice continues:
“My husband was killed like a criminal. All I ever wanted was his name to be exonerated. A good name is better than gold or silver.”
In Stockholm, the Right Livelihood Foundation echoed the call for exoneration. Nnimmo Bassey, a Nigerian environmentalist and Right Livelihood Laureate, said Saro-Wiwa’s courage continues to inspire global environmental justice movements.
“The Ogoni Nine must be completely exonerated of the false charges laid against them,” Bassey said. “We reject efforts by Shell and other oil companies to evade accountability for the environmental genocide they committed onshore.”
Bassey, attending the COP30 climate talks in Brazil, urged solidarity with Ogoni communities still suffering pollution and facing renewed oil exploration plans.
“Ken Saro-Wiwa showed what the fight against environmental injustice truly means. His lessons must be amplified,” he said.
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