Shell: Own up, Pay up, Clean up

Shell: Own up, Pay up, Clean up

Oil has polluted the land and water in the Niger Delta, ruining people’s lives and livelihoods. Their health and their future are at risk. Those responsible cannot just walk away. This was Amnesty International’s message during our 50th anniversary year, as we highlighted the devastating impact of two major oil spills in 2008 on the community of Bodo in the Niger Delta.

In April 2012, thousands of Amnesty activists and supporters in more than 16 countries joined Nigerian NGOs and Niger Delta communities for a global week of action. We sent a loud message to oil company Shell that it is time to own up, pay up and clean up.

Activists organized public events and demonstrations calling for Shell to clean up and compensate those who have been affected by it. Online, activists swamped Shell's Facebook and Twitter pages with messages and photos forcing the company to respond. At the end of the week, affected communities and Nigerian civil society captured media attention when they held a protest march to Shell's offices in Port Harcourt, Niger Delta.

We continue to keep up the pressure. At Shell's Annual General Meeting on 22 May 2012, we confronted the company again with the devastating impact their operations have had on the people and communities of the Niger Delta.

The failure by the oil industry to properly clean up oil spills and other pollution in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria exacerbates human suffering and environmental damage, and leaves people exposed to sustained violations of their economic, social and cultural rights.

The two major oil spills which occurred in 2008 in Bodo, in the Ogoniland region of the Niger Delta, continued for weeks before they were stopped – more than three years later Shell has still not cleaned up the pollution.

In August 2011, the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) found that Shell has failed to effectively clean up oil pollution in Ogoniland for years. While significant responsibility for human rights abuses in the Niger Delta rests with the Nigerian Government, UNEP’s findings make clear that substantial responsibility also rests with Shell.

Sign the petition to Shell’s Chief Executive demanding that the company OWN UP, PAY UP and CLEAN UP the Niger Delta.

To Peter Voser, Chief Executive Officer, Royal Dutch Shell,

We the undersigned write to express our concern about the ongoing impact of oil pollution on economic, social and cultural rights in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria.

We urge you to acknowledge Shell’s responsibility for the impacts of oil pollution in the Niger Delta, and we call on the company to:

  • Contribute the full $1 billion identified by UNEP as the start-up amount needed to establish an independent fund to clean up pollution in Ogoniland.

  • Carry out a comprehensive clean-up of oil pollution and environmental damage in Bodo and all other affected sites, in consultation with local communities.

  • Support the need for further assessment of oil pollution across the wider oil-producing Niger Delta region. 

  • Pay fair and adequate compensation to all affected communities.

Sign the petition here.