OneWorld.net (U.S.)

WASHINGTON, May 26 (OneWorld.net) - Nigerian military forces have reportedly been terrorizing civilians for over a week in the oil-rich but impoverished Niger Delta. The operation was supposed to target militants but resulted in the burning of entire villages and many innocent deaths, say rights groups calling for an intervention.

What's the Story?

Members of militant group, the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), with hostages. © ISN Security Watch's Dulue Mbachu"The continuous raids by the Nigerian military on villages and communities populated by innocent civilians does not justify their claim that they are trying to purge the region of so-called militants," said Joel Bisina, an expert on the Niger Delta at watchdog organization Justice in Nigeria Now (JNN).

Journalists and humanitarian aid are barred from the area on government orders. First-hand reports suggest the military is burning and looting villages.

Besides limiting information, the blockade also threatens the health of civilians living in the area. The Niger Delta has no schools, no health facilities, and most of the food in the region is imported, explains JNN.

"We need to ensure not only humanitarian access to the region, but full and free access by the media to ensure accurate reporting of the situation," said Bisina, whose organization is calling for a U.S.-backed intervention and independent third-party negotiations to solve this crisis. (See the full report from JNN below.)

Thousands Flee the Violence

Thousands of civilians have fled their villages in the Niger Delta since Nigerian government troops launched an offensive against militant groups in the state on May 13, reports IRIN, a humanitarian news service based at the United Nations.

The Nigerian Red Cross estimates that 1,000 people have fled, while other witnesses report about 3,000. Amnesty International estimates as many as 10,000 people could be on the move.

"I had to run from my home. I did not take a single item with me. I have 10 children but I don't know where any of them are. I could not count the number of people who were killed or injured but there were many. I could not even count," Patricia Okolo, a resident of the region, told IRIN.

A local official told IRIN that government troops were not attacking communities, but were trying to secure the region with raids targeting criminals and militant groups who carried out "heinous, uncivilized, and barbaric attacks."

Oil an Underlying Cause of Conflict

A number of militant groups have staged brutal attacks on oil facilities to demand a greater share of the region's oil wealth. The Niger Delta region is rich in oil and companies have made huge profits in recent years. But none of the wealth has been transferred to those living in the Niger Delta, which remains extremely underdeveloped and poor.

In response to the violence from militant groups, the Nigerian government allegedly recruited armed gangs to act in their interest, a tactic that has largely resulted in further abuses and civilian casualties, like the current outbreak of violence.

"Public sympathy leans naturally to the rebels since the mushrooming revenues of both federal and state governments have not been converted into improved services for millions of increasingly angry poor people," explains OneWorld.net's Nigeria country guide.

Oil Industry Harming the Region

Aside from inciting discontent and violence, the booming oil industry in the Niger Delta has had negative effects on the region's environment and the health of those who live in the area.

Decades of contamination of the water and soil from oil and gas operations mean most food must now be imported, says JNN, and the practice of "gas flaring" has put a toxic pall over many villages.

"During the drilling for crude oil, gas usually comes to the surface as well and is often vented or flared instead of used, particularly in countries that lack effective regulations, gas markets, and the necessary infrastructure to utilize the gas," explains the World Bank, which has launched a public-private partnership to help reduce the amount of gas flared in countries around the world.

The Bank estimates that globally around 150 billion cubic meters of gas -- an amount equal to 30 percent of the European Union's total gas consumption -- are flared or burned every year, causing some 400 million tons of annual carbon dioxide emissions. Figures show that more gas is flared in Nigeria than any other country in the world except Russia.

But economic waste and carbon emissions are not the concerns that have brought Nigerians out en masse against the practice. "Huge flames billow in the air over Ebocha, Nigeria, and above them, black clouds leap into the sky," reported National Public Radio's Ofeibea Quist-Arcton from the region in 2007, noting the noxious fumes that loom over homes, farms, and shops, and the "strange smell" and "audible hiss" in the air.

"In the areas close to the gas flares, medical staff report treating patients with all sorts of illnesses that they believe are related to the flames: bronchial, chest, rheumatic, and eye problems, among others," she reported, adding that local residents have a hard time sleeping because of the noise.

Shell to Stand Trial for Its Role in Nigeria

"Gas flaring in Nigeria, where Shell is by far the largest oil company, poisons Niger Delta communities and is a large, wasteful source of global warming pollution," said Elizabeth Bast of Friends of the Earth in a statement launching the Shell Guilty campaign in April. "It's time for Shell to put an end to its human rights abuses and climate crimes, including its gas flaring in Nigeria." The group has joined several other environmental and human rights groups in encouraging concerned people around the world to pressure Royal Dutch Shell to stop the practice.

The global drive to hold Shell accountable and compel it to stop gas flaring in Nigeria was re-ignited last month, when a U.S. judge ruled that Shell must stand trial for its alleged role in the torture and execution of Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight other Nigerian activists.

"Ken Saro-Wiwa's hanging revealed the true price of oil," said Steve Kretzmann of Oil Change International.

"We remember Saro-Wiwa by keeping alive his nonviolent struggle," added Ben Amunwa of PLATFORM/Remember Saro-Wiwa.

The Nigerian activist was a leader in the movement to defend the rights of Nigeria's Ogoni people and bring an end to Shell's gas flaring in Ogoni regions. Detained, imprisoned, and tortured during the early 1990s, he was executed by the state alongside eight fellow Ogoni activists in 1995.

"Substantial evidence indicates Shell collaborated with the Nigerian government in a campaign of brutal crackdowns that culminated in the execution of Saro-Wiwa and his colleagues," notes the Shell Guilty coalition, whose efforts center around the ShellGuilty.com Web site but also include grassroots advocacy, TV and online ads, and "calls for Shell to come clean about its corporate irresponsibility, human rights abuses, and record of environmental devastation."

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Military Attacks raze Niger Delta villages killing civilians; Civil society groups call for immediate ceasefire

From: Justice in Nigeria Now

5/21/09

WASHINGTON, D.C. - On the eighth day of full-scale military assault in Nigeria's Niger Delta, civil society groups around the United States are urging lawmakers and the Obama Administration to intervene and bring a halt to the violence and allowing humanitarian supplies to be brought into the region. The military operation is being undertaken in the guise of rooting out militants. However, a number of villages including Opuye, Okerenkoro, Kurutie and Oporoza, are reported burned to the ground and many innocent civilians are reported among those killed in military operations in the Gbaramatu region of Delta State, over the past 8 days. Journalists and humanitarian aid continue to be barred from entering the area by the military. In addition, first-hand reports are emerging from the Delta that Ijaw men have been targeted for arrest in the Warri waterfront; the waterfront is the entry point from Gbaramatu to the safety of the urban area of Warri.

"The continuous raids by the Nigerian military on villages and communities populated by innocent civilians does not justify their claim that they are trying to purge the region of so-called militants," said Joel Bisina, conflict management and community development expert on the Niger Delta. First-hand reports suggest the military is burning entire villages and looting them.

Oil companies have made record profits in recent years. Yet the oil-rich Niger Delta remains impoverished, with no schools, no health facilities, or basic infrastructure. Most food in the region is imported due to the decades of contamination of the water and soil by oil and gas companies operating in the region. Thus, the military blockade ultimately means starvation for thousands of people.

"We need to ensure not only humanitarian access to the region, but full and free access by the media to ensure accurate reporting of the situation," said Joel Bisina.

"Due to the media blockout, Americans may not realize that a rise in the price of gas at the pump is related to bloodshed in the Niger Delta," said Daphne Wysham, a fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies. "As one of the largest consumers of Nigerian crude, the United States government can not stand idly by and watch innocent civilians being killed, starved and maimed."

"We are calling for an immediate ceasefire, and monitored independent third-party negotiations to seek a permanent solution to the inequities that are the root cause of the problems in the Niger Delta.," said Laura Livoti, founder of Justice in Nigeria Now.

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