Cape Town — Four Nigerian widows who brought a case against oil giant Shell for allegedly helping corrupt witnesses testify against their late husbands, have had their case thrown out.
A Dutch court has rejected a suit against oil giant Shell brought by four widows of activists who were executed by late Nigerian military leader Sani Abacha in 1995 after protests against the company's exploitation of the oil-rich Niger Delta.
The women - Esther Kiobel, Victoria Bera, Blessing Eawo, and Charity Levula - sued Shell for its alleged role in the unlawful arrest, detention, and execution of their husbands, for opposing the oil giant and the military government.
But the Dutch court ruled that there was insufficient evidence to back their accusations. The judges decided that evidence was not sufficient or verifiable enough to establish the responsibility or involvement of Shell, or its Nigerian subsidiary Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) - and therefore the energy firm could not be held liable.
According to BBC, witnesses had testified to the court that they had signed prepared statements and had been coached to incriminate the defendants, in return for the promise of payments and jobs. They said they had been told that the money they received came from Shell. The widows believe a Nigerian operating company, that was part of the Shell group, had bribed the witnesses whose statements led to the conviction and hanging of their husbands.
In 2019, the court had handed the widows a rare win in their long-running battle by allowing the case to continue. But it had also said the claimants needed to prove Shell's liability.
On November 10, 1995, nine Nigerian environmental activists accused of murder, were executed by former military ruler Sani Abacha. Their deaths sparked an international outcry that lingers to this day. The men executed, were a group that became known as the "Ogoni Nine" - activists that included writer Ken Saro-Wiwa, Saturday Dobee, Nordu Eawo, Daniel Gbooko, Paul Levera, Felix Nuate, Baribor Bera, Barinem Kiobel, and John Kpuine.
Shell has always denied any wrongdoing.
