IV 

109TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. RES. 1072 

Urging the Government of Nigeria to conduct a thorough judicial review 

of the Ken Saro-Wiwa case. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

SEPTEMBER 29, 2006 

Ms. MCKINNEY (for herself, Mr. OWENS, Mr. MORAN of Virginia, Mr. 

KUCINICH, Mr. MCGOVERN, and Ms. KAPTUR) submitted the following 

resolution; which was referred to the Committee on International Relations 

RESOLUTION 

Urging the Government of Nigeria to conduct a thorough 

judicial review of the Ken Saro-Wiwa case. 

Whereas, on November 10, 1995, Ken Saro-Wiwa, Nigerian 

writer, environmental activist, and nominee for the Nobel 

Peace Prize, along with 8 colleagues, together known as 

the ‘‘Ogoni 9’’, were hanged by the military government 

of Nigeria, based on charges widely regarded as false; 

Whereas the Ogoni 9 had been nonviolently campaigning for 

improved living standards and a clean environment for 

the Ogoni People, whose Niger Delta land, air, and water 

was, and remains, severely polluted from oil extraction, 

and whose standard of living, despite the great mineral 

wealth their land has yielded since the early 1960s, is 

among the lowest in the world; 


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•HRES 1072 IH 

Whereas the international condemnation that followed the 

executions included the suspension of Nigeria from the 

British Commonwealth of Nations; 

Whereas, in 1996, a United Nations mission to Nigeria found 

the military tribunal in contravention of international and 

domestic law, and recommended financial relief for the 

survivors of the Ogoni 9 and improvements in the socioeconomic conditions of the Ogoni and other minorities in 

the Delta; 

Whereas 10 years later, none of the United Nations recommendations have been implemented, and the environmental and social situations have deteriorated for the 

Ogoni and other Delta communities; 

Whereas the Ogoni 9 remain convicted of a crime of which 

they were unfairly tried; 

Whereas Ogoniland remains severely polluted and gas flaring 

continues unabated; 

Whereas the security and stability in the Niger Delta are 

threatened by a proliferation of small arms, armed gangs, 

and black market oil bunkering; 

Whereas despite these pressures, Ogoniland remains an island of nonviolence, and the Ogoni voted in high numbers 

in the 1999 elections; 

Whereas stability in the Niger Delta is necessary to prevent 

an increase in global oil costs; and 

Whereas in the interest of the protection of human rights, 

justice, and stability in the Delta, redress should be given 

to the Ogonis and their use of nonviolent means should 

be recognized: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 


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•HRES 1072 IH 

1 (1) urges the Government of Nigeria to conduct 

2 a thorough judicial review of the trial of the Ogoni 

3 9 and to provide just compensation to the survivors 

4 of the Ogoni 9 if a miscarriage of justice is found; 

5 (2) urges the Government of Nigeria, inter6 national donors, and international oil companies op7 erating in the Niger Delta to increase assistance sig8 nificantly to improve the lives of the Ogoni and 

9 other affected communities and for pollution abate10 ment and cleanup in the Niger Delta region, in close 

11 consultation with local communities; 

12 (3) urges the Government of Nigeria to ensure 

13 that all members of the security forces receive train14 ing in international standards on the use of force 

15 and firearms, particularly the 1979 United Nations 

16 Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials and 

17 the 1990 United Nations Basic Principles on the 

18 Use of Force and Fire Arms by Law Enforcement 

19 Officials; 

20 (4) calls upon the Secretary of State to seek ur21 gently to ensure that United States oil companies 

22 operating in the Niger Delta comply, at a minimum, 

23 with the Voluntary Principles for Security and 

24 Human Rights; and 


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•HRES 1072 IH 

1 (5) urges the Secretary General of the United 

2 Nations to institute a 10-year followup mission to 

3 Ogoniland. 

Æ 


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