Nigeria Posthumously Pardons the “Ogoni Nine,” Including Slain Environmental Activist Ken Saro-Wiwa

Nigeria Posthumously Pardons the “Ogoni Nine,” Including Slain Environmental Activist Ken Saro-Wiwa

Nigeria’s government has posthumously pardoned nine activists known as the Ogoni Nine, who were hanged in 1995 after a sham military trial that targeted peaceful protesters demanding an end to oil drilling and environmental damage in the Niger Delta. Among those receiving a pardon is the late Ken Saro-Wiwa, who led the movement against the Shell Oil Company’s practices in Ogoniland. In a statement, Amnesty International’s Nigeria director said t…

Nigerian President Tinubu’s pardon of ‘Ogoni Nine’ draws ethnic group’s rejection

Photo credit: DiasporaEngager (www.DiasporaEngager.com). By Ope Adetayo, Reuters — Nigeria’s Ogoni activists on Friday rejected a posthumous pardon for nine members executed three decades ago by a military dictatorship, criticising President Bola Tinubu’s move as inadequate and perpetuating injustice. To commemorate Nigeria’s Democracy Day on June 12, Tinubu pardoned the men, known as the “Ogoni […]

Saro-Wiwa Family Responds to Presidential Pardon with Call for Accountability

Thirty years after his execution, Nigerian environmental and human rights activist Ken Saro-Wiwa has been posthumously pardoned by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. The announcement, made on Nigeria’s Democracy Day, also included national honors for Saro-Wiwa and his eight fellow campaigners, collectively known as the Ogoni Nine, whose 1995 execution sparked global outrage and led to […]

Senator Birabi Berates Tinubu for Honouring Saro-Wiwa, Ogoni Nine: ‘They Were Killers, Not Martyrs’

ABUJA, Nigeria — Former Senator Bennett Birabi has criticised President Bola Tinubu’s decision to posthumously honour Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight other members of the Ogoni Nine, describing them as “killers” rather than martyrs. Birabi, who hails from the same Ogoni region of Rivers State, made the comments during an interview on Arise Television on Tuesday, June 24, 2025, days after President Tinubu conferred national honours and granted state pard…