Settlement in Saro-Wiwa action against Shell

Nearly two weeks after the human rights case brought against Shell by the family of Ken Saro-Wiwa was postponed at the eleventh hour, the oil giant have agreed to pay $15.5 million in an out-of-court settlement.

Most of this money will go to the families of Saro-Wiwa and the other eight activists executed by the Nigerian government in 1995, but $5 million will also go into a fund to support initiatives to help people in the oil rich Niger Delta.

Whilst I can't help but feel some dismay that Shell weren't hauled over hot coals in a court of law, and that a $5 million fund is scant compensation for the people of the Niger Delta who suffer whilst Shell rake in billions, the oil giant's settlement out of court can very much be taken as an admission of guilt and a starting point for further campaign work against Shell and other multinational oil companies who continue to trample on human rights across the world.

>> See also, legal action against Chevron Texaco.