On the 10th of October, We the People paid tribute to the indefatigable memory of Ken Saro Wiwa. He would have turned 84 years old on October 10, 2025, if the Nigerian state had not brutally murdered him and eight of his compatriots on November 10, 1995.
Ken Saro Wiwa mobilized the Ogoni people under the Movement for the Survival of Ogoni People (MOSOP), and called the attention of the world to the poverty, neglect and environmental destruction which decades of oil exploitation had bequeathed on the Ogoni people. MOSOP demanded fairer benefits to the Ogoni people from oil wealth, as well as remediation and compensation for the ecological damage caused by the reckless activities of oil companies.
The Nigerian military government responded to the demands and non-violent protests of the people with vicious repression. A military operation was initiated in Ogoniland. The military visited mass killings and widespread carnage on the Ogonis, which remain largely undocumented. Thousands of Ogonis lost their lives, and many others went into forced exile around the world. In May 1994, Ken Saro-Wiwa, Saturday Dobee, Nordu Eawo, Daniel Gbooko, Paul Levera, Felix Nuate, Baribor Bera, Barinem Kiobel were arrested. After a few months of predetermined trial by a special military tribunal, a sentence of death was pronounced on Ken Saro-Wiwa and his comrades on October 31, 1995. Ten days later, during the time the accused could appeal the judgement, all nine were executed on November 10, 1995, amid widespread outrage, global condemnation and eventual international sanctions against Nigeria.
Their Kangaroo trial was characterized by forced witnesses who later recanted their testimonies. Even the lawyers of the accused withdrew because of the predetermined and biased position of the tribunal.
Ken’s sacrifice still inspires activists all over the world.
We the People, Health of Mother Earth Foundation, CAPPA, Oil Watch Africa and other partners used the opportunity to call global attention to the demands contained in the Ogoni Bill of Rights and the need to halt all attempts to resume oil extraction in the territory
