Blood, Sweat, Tears and Oil: The mistreatment of the Ogoni People by Royal Dutch Shell

In 1956, oil was discovered in the Nigerian state of Bayelsa, less than 50 miles south of the Delta state line. In 1958, the Delta started producing oil at around

Miles, William. Hausaland Divide: Colonialism and Independence in Nigeria and Niger. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1994Obi, Cyril. The Changing Forms of Identity Politics in Nigeria under Economic Adjustment: The Case of the Oi

Oil was first thought to be discovered in the state of Louisiana in 1868 by the Louisiana Oil and Coal Company fifteen miles west of Lake Charles. However, the Louisiana Oil and Coal Company was unsuccessful at drilling oil but the company did find extensive sulfur deposits. (Louisiana Mid-Continent Oil and Gas Association. (n.d.). Retrieved October 07, 2016, from http://www.lmoga.com/resources/oil-gas-101/history-of-the-industry/) Oil was first discovered in Louisiana on September 21, 1901. (Louisiana Mid-Continent Oil and Gas Association. (n.d.). Retrieved October 07, 2016, from http://www.lmoga.com/resources/oil-gas-101/history-of-the-industry/)

Niger Delta region, placing the Nigerian oil output down to a third of its capacity” (Klare 3).

Jonah Gbemre instituted a lawsuit on behalf of himself and the Iwhereken Community in Delta State, in the Niger Delta area of Nigeria against Shell Petroleum Development Company Nigeria Ltd, NNPC and the Attorney General of the Federation . Alleging violations of both constitutional provisions and those of the African Charter under the fundamental rights enforcement procedure in the Nigerian constitution, the Plaintiffs claimed that sections 33(1) and 34(1) of the constitution, their right to life and the dignity of the human person and articles 4, 16 and 24 of the African Charter had been violated by the oil exploration and production activities of Shell, which led to incessant gas flaring . In addition, the plaintiffs alleged that the continuous gas flaring by the MNCs had led to the pollution of the environment, exposing the community to the risk of premature death, respiratory illnesses, asthma and cancer . Their crop production was alleged to have been ruined by pollution thereby adversely affecting their food security . Furthermore, many of the natives were said to have died with many more were suffering from various illnesses causing the Plaintiffs to complain that the community had been left in a state of gross underdevelopment . One of the many grounds on which the defendants hinged their case, according to Amao, was that the quoted articles of the African Charter , under the Nigerian fundamental rights enforcement procedure, do not create enforceable rights . Due

Nigeria is said that it is One-Third bigger than Texas, Nigeria is the biggest country in Africa. Nigeria’s current president is Muhammadu Buhari he’s been the president since 2015. Nigeria is runned by a multiparty Government meaning the Military can control the civilians if they wanted to and to tell them what to do. The population in Nigeria is 179 million people living in the country. People in Nigeria still have farms and they have jobs to provide for their

For example, Shell Oil, an MNC (Multi National Corporation), extracted 50% of Nigeria’s yearly crude output, and 14% of its own output from the Niger delta region (The Changing Nature of Third World Exploitation, 1995). Though a large number of the local populace was recruited by Shell to serve as the basic labor force, there has been no change in the deplorable conditions the locals were living in. Over a period of 15 years, due to massive and widespread oil spills, heavy land degradation of the alluvial soil has taken place. The locals, who come from an agriculture based society, have in effect, been deprived of their ancestral way of life, their heritage, all due to the greed driven actions of the partly

Nigeria, with a population of 190,584,690 people is the most populous country in West Africa. Marked with huge reserves of oil and natural gas, oil exploration in Nigeria first began in the year 1908, with long breaks during the first and Second World War. After the further discovery of commercial oil fields in Oloibiri in 1956, crude oil has since being produced in large quantities. Today, the country produces a maximum capacity of 2.5 million barrels of crude oil per day, and is the world’s sixth largest producer of crude oil. Crude oil export, accounts for 90% of Nigeria’s earnings. Oil exploration occurs onshore, on land and swamps, while off-shore operations occur mainly in water depths reaching 2500m. Currently, crude oil is

The Nigerian-Biafran Civil War remains a touchstone for twenty-first century Nigeria. For Igbo Nigerians, the failed secession of Biafra is a historical moment that informs the collective consciousness of more than 27 million people. Survivors, historians, and human rights groups describe the massacres of Biafra as genocide. Depending on the historical document, reports of the dead range from 50,000 to 100,000 Igbo men, women, and children. Numerous combatants and non-combatants were killed by violence; still many more were killed by starvation. Life Magazine’s July 12, 1968 cover “Starving Children of Biafra War” and the iconic photographs of Don McCullin documented the travesty of the civil war, seemingly happening out of the view of the

In 1994, Equatorial Guinea was one of the most impoverished countries in Africa. During that time, the country had an incredibly low life expectancy of just 46 years, and the inhabitants were forced to survive on only $1 a day. Then, in 1995, they discovered a natural resource that would have the potential to change their economic well-being and quality of life forever. In this year, Equatorial Guinea discovered an immense amount of oil right off the coast of the country. Just nine years after this finding, all major US oil companies, notably Exxon-Mobile, Marathon Oil, and Amerada Hess, were drilling for oil in this once poverty-stricken country. After this notable discovery, Equatorial Guinea was generating $4 billion in revenue per year solely from the oil drilling industry. However, the inexperienced leaders that governed the country entered into a contract where they agreed to give 80%

In Oil on Water, Helon Habila, the author, uses his characters’ backgrounds and experiences to illustrate how corruption affects individuals and communities. The novel is set in the Niger delta. The two main characters are journalists who have personalities which strongly contrast with each other. Rufus is an idealist and Zaq is a jaded veteran reporter. Rufus, unlike Zaq, grew up in the delta and is personally connected to the communities. The story follows Rufus and Zaq on an assignment to find “the White Woman,” but ultimately, Habila uses his characters to tell a much more complex tale of environmental devastation and destruction of communities as a result of oil company corruption and greed.

oil in Nigeria. Nigeria’s large supply of high quality crude oil helped Shell climb to the top,

Nigeria is an Agricultural and oil rich nation but characterised by Political instability, corruption, poor

     Nigeria has been a country in political turmoil for a long time. The country was created in 1914 under British colonial rule and at that time it was considered a protectorate. It was not until 1960 that Nigeria received independence from the United Kingdom. One of Nigeria's problems politically is that it has over three hundred different ethnic groups. The three largest of these are the Hausa-Fulani, Igbo, and Yoruba. At the time of the independence of Nigeria it was split up into three states with each state being under the control of one of the major ethnic groups. The natural resources of the other 297 ethnic groups were exploited for the major three groups,

Most children in the Niger delta have little or no education, due to lack of funds from their parents who have lost their lands and have no jobs because of limited opportunities. The Niger delta government and the oil companies have refused to look into the situation; instead they favor their close relations neglecting the masses. Corruption in the Niger delta has led some youths in taking drastic measure in order to put food on their table. For example, Ikechukwu Efe an indigene of the Niger delta said that some of his friends created their own “oil refinery”, which is made up of crude oil in metal barrels with controlled heat from fire woods. This is a dangerous process in refining crude oil but the degree of poverty in the state left his friends with no choice. If only the government of the Niger delta have created jobs with the wealth of the state Ikechukwu’s friend would not have to put their lives in danger. Until corruption is put to an abrupt the people of the Niger delta will continue to live in poverty.