In 2008 two large Shell Oil spills in the Niger Delta leaked around 4,000 barrels a day for ten weeks. This was larger than the 1989 spill in Alaska by Exxon Valdez. As they have not cleaned up these spills and continue to pump for profit, Shell Oil repeatedly violates human rights and environmental standards in the Niger Delta. It has been reported that after Shell learned of the spill, it was decided that it was less profitable to close the pipelines and clean up, so operations were kept open.
I was first drawn to this issue at the Amnesty International Student Conference in 2011. Two speakers came to the conference and gave an in-depth presentation on what is happening in the Niger Delta. One was a lawyer from a human rights law firm based in London. The other was a specialist on the Shell Oil in the Niger Delta case. Both had been to the area and seen the widespread impact and devastation to the communities living there. It is not just the water that has been ruined by Shell’s carelessness: the ecosystem suffers and trees are covered in the black sticky substance. It has become a place where grass, animals and people are struggling to survive.
Amnesty International stresses that Shell must “Own up, Pay up, Clean up”. This campaign falls under a wider umbrella of corporate accountability. Amnesty UK defines this as “a responsibility which all companies have to respect human rights in their operations”. Human rights abuses are particularly high in the extractive industry which is to be expected, considering the impact that such operations have on land and water resources. The region that we are specifically talking about it called Bodo in Ogoniland. We are finally at a point where Shell had conceded that it has some responsibility to clean up the area, yet we must continue to push for a comprehensive cleanup and adequate compensation to the Bodo community.
According to the United Nations the region needs the world’s largest ever oil clean-up, which will cost an initial $1 billion and take 30 years. There was recently a report conducted in Nigeria based on two years of in-depth scientific research. It found that oil contamination in Ogoniland is widespread and severe, and that people in the Niger Delta have been exposed to this contamination for decades.
The report provides irrefutable evidence of the devastating impact of oil pollution on people’s lives in the Delta. This area is one of Africa’s most bio-diverse regions and the report examines the damage to agriculture and fisheries. It has destroyed the livelihoods and food sources of 69,000 people. The level of contamination in the drinking water in the Niger Delta poses serious health risks. This pollution has exposed these communities to an appalling human rights violation. A doctor in the Bodo community has been tracking the advancing cancer rates in his population for the last few years. Shell refuses to accept responsibility for these statistics yet people in this community are dying because of its corporate mentality. In one case, water was found to contain a known carcinogen at levels 900 times above World Health Organisation guidelines. The UN report has recommended emergency measures to alert communities to the danger.
This problem is not solely related to the two spills in 2008. The UN Development Program (UNDP) says that more than 6,800 spills were recorded between 1976 and 2001 in the Niger Delta. Many experts believe that due to under-reporting, the true figures may be far higher. Under Nigerian regulations oil companies must clean up all oil spills. However, these regulations are not enforced.
In an Amnesty International interview with a local fisherman, he said: “If you want to go fishing, you have to paddle for about four hours through several rivers before you can get to where you can catch fish and the spill is lesser… some of the fishes we catch, when you open the stomach, it smells of crude oil”.
This situation is affecting a population that survives on fishing and farming. The water has been polluted by the leaking oil for miles out of the Niger Delta. Pictures of fish have been shown with tumours and other deformities caused by the toxins in the environment. It is inconceivable to think about the toxins that Shell Petroleum Development Company is knowingly exposing these people to. We have come to a point where they are breaching basic human rights and they are getting away with it. Overall, there seems to be a simple and clear message which has repeatedly stemmed from this situation in the Niger Delta. The people in Bodo can no longer create a livelihood out of fishing. Subsequently, they cannot subsist by growing and catching their own food.
These oil companies are getting away with gross violations simply because they are not being held accountable. According to Forbes magazine, Shell is the fifth largest company in the world (and the second-largest energy company) and one of the six oil and gas ‘supermajors’.
Although there are other companies drilling in the Niger Delta, Shell is responsible for the pipelines and maintenance of the oil extraction equipment. As Shell is a UK based company they care about what we in the UK think. Therefore, Amnesty UK can effectively apply pressure on a company which wants support within the UK. According to the UNDP, more than 60% of the people in the Ogoniland region depend on the natural environment for their livelihood, which underlines the gravity of this situation.
We must demand that Shell pay an initial $1 billion to start cleaning up. This issue and oil leakage with Shell is clearly an ongoing problem. On a positive note, the publicising of this knowledge has finally started to gain momentum and attract recent press coverage.
On the 10th of November 2011, The Guardian ran an article addressing the issue, with the headline “Shell must pay $1bn to deal with Niger Delta oil spills, Amnesty urges”.
Our Power as Students
Overall, student involvement is key as we are Shell’s potential work force. Not only does Shell feel uncomfortable in the face of increasing student antagonism, but it has actually gone so far as to threaten students involved in Amnesty International societies by saying that they were “impacting their future job prospects”. Obviously, Shell is a company which aims to achieve its goals through force and intimidation.
University of York Amnesty International Society has just completed an action on campus and we will be doing another action at the Shell Petrol Station on Hull Road. Here we will dress up in our white boiler suits and hand out leaflets, pretend to clean the petrol station with brushes and brooms and force customers to rethink the company which they are supporting. It is not surprising that Shell boasts one of the lowest petrol prices in York if it cuts costs through the violation of indigenous communities. However, we have the power to effect change within Shell and stand up to corporations who do not respect basic human rights.
It is also worthwhile to look into investment policies of the University to see if they have any connections with Shell. Amnesty doesn’t actively encourage disinvestment but it is interesting to question why the University is investing in Shell or perhaps why certain departments have funding from Shell.
Another type of effective action is targeting careers fairs at which Shell representatives are present. Amnesty points out that we are not necessarily challenging Shell employees about why they work for Shell, it is more a question of getting them to think about Shell’s actions and encouraging them to think about Shell as a company. There are not any planned careers fairs at York at which Shell representatives will be present, however, other Universities have used them as opportunities to express their disapproval of Shell’s actions. It is these events which instigated Shell’s meetings with two Amnesty international chairs at other Universities in the UK.
To put things into perspective, The Guardian has broken down Shell’s annual earnings of £18 billion to £2.2 million every hour. It wouldn’t take more than two weeks of profit for them to clean up their act in the Niger Delta but, instead, human rights violations grow bigger every day and it is a struggle to get Shell to admit accountability. This is not just a question of Shell Oil in the Niger Delta. It is also a larger statement of corporate accountability and the way in which we, the public, maintain control over what happens to our environment and the way in which people can be treated.
Although Shell has admitted some responsibility for the oil spills which have taken place, it has been four years since the large spill in 2008. Unfortunately, the total impact of the spill has never been thoroughly assessed and the Bodo people are waiting for Shell to clean up and compensate them. Amnesty reports that one fisherman said: “They keep telling us, ‘Shell is coming soon’, but Shell has not come. I have not seen anyone from Shell”.
There are many cases where corporations abuse their power and their ties with the government to destroy local communities either directly or through exploitation of their resources. The Monsanto Company in the USA sues organic farmers whose crops they ruin. It is a company which genetically modifies corn, contaminates crops and is wiping out indigenous corn varieties in Mexico with their GMO corn and low corn prices. Veolia, a French water company, has exploited local communities bordering the Great Lakes on the East Coast of North America, and Foster Farms, a company which produces poor quality chicken meat, is abusing the tenant farmers who supply them by keeping them in a cyclical state of debt. This isn’t just an issue about Shell Oil in the Niger Delta. There is a wider message to be delivered here as the individual voice stands up to the corporate voice.
Please add your name to a petition to Peter Voser, Chief Executive of Royal Dutch Shell: www.amnesty.org.uk/shell/
Amnesty on Campus
This term we will be focusing on the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT). Currently there is a big push for a global and comprehensive treaty that regulates the arms trade. In July, world leaders will meet to discuss and create the first International Arms Trade Treaty. We are calling for the UK Prime Minister to support a Bulletproof ATT at this conference.
Amnesty International is calling for a Treaty that:
>“Protects human rights by guaranteeing that any transfer of arms is stopped if there is evidence that they are likely to be used in violation of international human rights or humanitarian law.
>Is comprehensive so as to include all types of conventional weapons and equipment and all transfers and transactions, including those undertaken by middlemen.
>Is enforceable and transparent to ensure all governments must adopt strong national rules and regulations and publicly report on their arms sale so they can be held accountable for their actions.
>Enters into force because, believe it or not, even once the Treaty is agreed it will only be binding if a set number of states introduce national legislation to ratify it. This number is to be determined at the final negotiations in July.”
There are treaties which regulate the exchange of bananas and dinosaur bones, and yet there is nothing to regulate the arms trade at this point in time. Currently at least 1,500 people die every day as a result of armed violence and conflict.
For more information, go to the link below and add your signature to this petition to David Cameron:
www.amnesty.org.uk/arms/
Amnesty in Schools
We will be beginning a new campaign this term to go into local schools in York and set up Amnesty International groups. Personally, having an Amnesty International group in my school is how I became involved and Amnesty has lots of materials available for us to use in schools to get children involved. We will be starting with Millthorpe School and we will go into the assembly for years 9,10 and 11 to tell them what Amnesty International is about. We also have a teacher on board who will make sure the group continues long after we have set it up.
Anyone who is keen to get involved is welcome to come to our Amnesty International group meeting every Monday, or email us on the address below. If you cannot make the meetings, let us know or find us on Facebook and see how you can get involved.
Interested in joining University of York Amnesty International Group (UYAI)?
Search for us on Facebook or come to one of our meetings on Mondays at 6:30pm in Wentworth: Room W/222.
We also have a weekly Amnesty Radio show called Jamnesty.
Listen to us at www.ury.york.ac.uk. on Tuesdays 6-7pm for some groovy tunes and human rights talk.
In the last few weeks of every term we have a music event called Jamnesty. Keep your ears and eyes peeled for information about the date, time and theme.
If you are interested in joining the group, have questions about the article or would like to be a guest speaker on our radio show, email us at: [email protected]