Ken Saro-Wiwa
Nigerian environmental activist (1941–1995) / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Kenule Beeson "Ken" Saro-Wiwa (10 October 1941 – 10 November 1995)[1] was a Nigerian writer, television producer, and environmental activist.[2] Saro-Wiwa was a member of the Ogoni people, an ethnic minority in Nigeria whose homeland, Ogoniland,[3] in the Niger Delta, has been targeted for crude oil extraction since the 1950s and has suffered extreme environmental damage from decades of indiscriminate petroleum waste dumping.[4]
Ken Saro-Wiwa | |
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Born | Kenule Beeson Saro-Wiwa (1941-10-10)10 October 1941 |
Died | 10 November 1995(1995-11-10) (aged 54) Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria |
Cause of death | Execution by hanging |
Occupations |
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Movement | Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People |
Children | 5, including Ken Wiwa, Zina and Noo |
Parent |
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Relatives | Owens Wiwa (brother) |
Awards |
Initially as a spokesperson, and then as the president, of the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP), Saro-Wiwa led a nonviolent campaign against environmental degradation of the land and waters of Ogoniland by the operations of the multinational petroleum industry, especially the Royal Dutch Shell company.[5] He criticized the Nigerian government for its reluctance to enforce environmental regulations on the foreign petroleum companies operating in the area.[6]
At the peak of his non-violent campaign, he was tried by a special military tribunal[7] for allegedly masterminding the murder of Ogoni chiefs at a pro-government meeting, and hanged in 1995 by the military dictatorship of General Sani Abacha.[8] His execution provoked international outrage and resulted in Nigeria's suspension from the Commonwealth of Nations for over three years.[9][10]