Day one of Ogale and Bille communities vs Shell trial

Photos of protest outside Royal Court of Justice available via link below

‘Shell must take responsibility for the poisoning they have caused both directly and indirectly and commit to cleaning up their toxic mess’ - Peter Frankental

Activists and speakers - including King Okabi of the Ogale community - today called for an end to Shell's pollution of the Niger Delta and compensation for the damage they have done on day one of the Ogale and Bille communities vs Shell trial.

Amnesty International UK, the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP), AFRICA: Seen & Heard and Justice 4 Nigeria marked the start of the trial with the stunt ‘Ecocide Babe’ by British-Nigerian artist-activist The Crude Madonna outside the Royal Courts of Justice.

For 60 years Shell's oil spills and leaks due to poorly maintained pipelines, wells and inadequate clean-up attempts that have ravaged the health and livelihoods of many of the 30 million people living in the Niger Delta – most of whom live in poverty.

More than 13,500 Ogale and Bille residents in the Niger Delta have filed claims against Shell over the past decade demanding the company clean up oil spills that they say have wrecked their livelihoods and caused widespread devastation to the local environment. They can’t fish anymore because their water sources, including their wells for drinking water, are poisoned and the land is contaminated which has killed plant life, meaning communities can no longer farm.   

Ahead of the start of the trial, a stunt supported by the organisations (listed above) by The Crude Madonna - representing Niger Delta womanhood and resistance - wore traditional Nigerian dress and gold-painted Shell-shaped medallions saying ‘hell’ and ‘oil’ coated with ‘crude oil’ and holding the Ecocide Babe Alera (which means ‘it is enough’ in the local Khana language) with crude oil congealed around the baby’s mouth.

Created by artists The Crude Madonna and THE DnA FACTORY MRSS, the Ecocide Babe symbolises the devastating effect of Shell's oil pollution on fertility, pregnancy and infant health in the region as well as its overall impact on communities and the environment.

Peter Frankental, Amnesty International UK’s Business and Human Rights Director, said:

“This vividly powerful performance highlights the devastation that people across the Niger Delta have suffered for so long. Shell must take responsibility for the poisoning they have caused both directly and indirectly and commit to cleaning up their toxic mess before they leave the region.

“Shell must not be allowed to leave without making sure the Niger Delta’s land and water are 100 percent clean of their petrochemical poison. It is vital that the affected communities are properly compensated and that they are fully involved in the legal process and their demands are reflected in the final ruling.”

A protest also took place in Ogoniland in the Niger Delta as the trial began.

Shell plc is domiciled in London and should be legally responsible for the environmental failures of its subsidiary company, the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria. 

Please see photos in link: https://marieanne.smugmug.com/Niger-Delta-communities-vs-Shell All photos credit M-A Ventoura/Amnesty International UK

Image 1: Lazarus Tamana of MOSOP and The Crude Madonna protest Shell’s pollution of the Niger Delta outside the Royal Courts of Justice at the start the Ogale and Bille communities vs Shell trial. Credit M-A Ventoura/Amnesty International UK

Images 2-4: Activists protest outside the Royal Courts of Justice at the start of the Ogale and Bille communities vs Shell trial. Credit M-A Ventoura/Amnesty International UK

Image 5: The Crude Madonna holding the Ecocide Babe with crude oil congealed around the baby’s mouth - Niger Delta communities take Shell to court for Shell's devastating pollution of the region. Credit M-A Ventoura/Amnesty International UK

Image 6: King Okpabi of the Ogale community outside the court calls for an end to Shell's pollution of the Niger Delta and compensation for the damage it has done. Credit: M-A Ventoura/Amnesty International UK