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The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 - Politics - Nairaland

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The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 / Abba Kyari's Last Statement Before His Death / Osinbajo Worshipping In Church In 1995 (Tony Rapu's Throwback Video) (2) (3) (4)

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The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by EkoErrands: 10:38pm On Jul 31, 2017
THE LAST STATEMENT OF KEN SARO WIWA AT THE MILITARY TRIBUNAL IN 1995

My lord, since my arrest on the 21st of May, 1994 I have been subjected to physical and mental torture, held incommunicado and denied food for weeks and medical attention for months.

My seventy-four year old mother has been whipped and arrested, my wife beaten and threatened with detention, the three telephone lines to my office and residence cut and they remain cut to this day, my office and home have been ransacked on three different occasions and personal and family property, official files and documents taken away without documentation.

I have been calumniated in the press and on satellite television before the whole world by a Rivers State government anxious to prejudice the mind of the public and to convince that public of my guilt even before trial. Only recently, before the United Nations Committee for the Eradication of Racism and Discrimination in Geneva, an official delegation of the Federal Government which included the Special Adviser on Legal Affairs to the Head of State, Professor Yazudu, declared me responsible for the murders which are the subject of this Tribunal, even before Tribunal has found against me or anyone else.

The fact that a case of homicide is being charged before a Tribunal set up under Decree No. 2 of 1987 speaks for itself. I am aware of the many strictures laid against the decree and this Tribunal by local and international observers. All the same, I have followed the proceedings here with keen and detailed interest, not only because I am charged before this Tribunal, but also because, as a writer, I am a custodian of the conscience of society. I regret that the legal counsel I freely chose, Gani Fawhimi, the human rights hero and pride of this country, was forced to withdraw. His withdrawal has denied credibility to this trial.

With the permission of the Tribunal, I would now like to make a filmic representation which will graphically demonstrate all that I have said here and amplify the details thereof.

My lord, we all stand before history. I am a man of peace, of ideas. Appalled by the denigrating poverty of my people who live on a richly-endowed land, distressed by their political marginalization and economic strangulation, angered by the devastation of their land, their ultimate heritage, anxious to preserve their right to life and to a decent living, and determined to usher to this country as a whole a fair and just democratic system which protects everyone and every ethnic group and gives us all a valid claim to human civilization, I have devoted all my intellectual and material resources, my very life, to a cause in which I have total belief and from which I cannot be blackmailed or intimidated.

I have no doubt at all about the ultimate success of my cause, no matter the trials and tribulations which I and those who believe with me may encounter on our journey. Nor imprisonment nor death can stop our ultimate victory.

I repeat that we all stand before history. I and my colleagues are not the only ones on trial. Shell is here on trial and it is as well that it is represented by counsel said to be holding a watching brief. The company has, indeed, ducked this particular trial, but its day will surely come and the lessons learnt here may prove useful to it for there is no doubt in my mind that the ecological war the company has waged in the delta will be called to question sooner than later and the crimes of that war duly punished. The crime of the company's dirty wars against the Ogoni people will also be punished.

On trial also is the Nigerian nation, its present rulers and all those who assist them. Any nation which can do to the weak and disadvantaged what the Nigerian nation has done to the Ogoni, loses a claim to independence and to freedom from outside influence.

I am not one of those who shy away from protesting injustice and oppression, arguing that they are expected from a military regime. The military do not act alone. They are supported by a gaggle of politicians, lawyers, judges, academics and businessmen, all of them hiding under the claim that they are only doing their duty, men and women too afraid to wash their pants of their urine. We all stand on trial, my lord, for by our actions we have denigrated our country and jeopardized the future of our children.

As we subscribe to the sub-normal and accept double standards, as we lie and cheat openly, as we protect injustice and oppression, we empty our classrooms, degrade our hospitals, fill our stomachs with hunger and elect to make ourselves the slaves of those who subscribe to higher standards, pursue the truth, and honour justice, freedom and hard work.

I predict that the scene here will be played and replayed by generations yet unborn. Some have already cast themselves in the role of villains, some are tragic victims, some still have a chance to redeem themselves. The choice is for each individual.

I predict that a denouement of the riddle of the Niger delta will soon come. The agenda is being set at this trial. Whether the peaceful ways I have favoured will prevail depends on what the oppressor decides, what signals it sends out to the waiting public.

In my innocence of the false charges I face here, in my utter conviction, I call upon the Ogoni people, the peoples of the Niger delta, and the oppressed ethnic minorities of Nigeria to stand up now and fight fearlessly and peacefully for their rights. History is on their side, God is on their side. For the Holy Quran says in Sura 42, verse 41: "All those who fight, when oppressed incur no guilt, but Allah shall punish the oppressor." Come the day.

Ken Saro-Wiwa
Port Harcourt
21st September, 1995.

..copied.

3 Likes 1 Share

Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by farouk0403(m): 10:40pm On Jul 31, 2017
Was he a muslim ? the last paragraph
Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by ESDKING: 10:50pm On Jul 31, 2017
Ok
Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by Nobody: 10:50pm On Jul 31, 2017
[i][/i]may all Hausa Fulani end in everlasting hell fire

4 Likes 2 Shares

Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by clarocuzioo(m): 5:58am On Aug 01, 2017
Ken Saro Wiwa, Rest in Peace, I remember that morning in Government College Umuahia, our principal then T. N. Onwumere (Supi) told us to observe a minute silence in your honour, we will always look at the prefects' board and see your name written there, we are not surprised in your fighting for the freedom of your people same way as Nnamdi Kanu as we understood the stuff you are made of. The course you are fighting for shall one day come to pass. It's heart breaking that one of the people that raped you of justice is being compensated today as the Comptroller General of Customs, but the fight and struggle for the Liberation has gathered momentum, Adieu Wiwa.

7 Likes

Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by proeast(m): 6:28am On Aug 01, 2017
farouk0403:
Was he a muslim ? the last paragraph
"Ken" is obviously a Christian, he used that line to appeal to the jihadists. He was obviously jittery when he realized his fate and all his calls on the Niger Deltans to arose and fight wasnt heeded. Despite his faith in Nigeria, he was still killed like a chicken! I could make comparisons with Nnamdi Kanu's trial and how he stood firmly in challenging the authorities, even to the extent of lambasting the biased judges and Buhari, and how the Igbo nation rose to his defence with full force even in the face of death! It shows that Nigeria is a bully & like all bulies, cowardly intimidates only the timid. Nnamdi Kanu is smart! God Bless Biafra!!!

19 Likes 3 Shares

Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by Nobody: 6:28am On Aug 01, 2017
Rest in peace Ken.

The struggle you died for is very much alive.

The man who signed ur death warrant died few years later.

The parasitic north have refuse to leave their host. They lay claims to the inevitability of Nigeria's unity.

God's willing, we shall prevail

7 Likes 1 Share

Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by Nobody: 6:47am On Aug 01, 2017
Rest on Rest on Ken Saro-Wiwa,

You were one of a kind,your type does not come in every generation, it's safe to say that Niger Delta is yet to have a man like you.Selfless ,fearless, and not looking for personal aggrandizement.

The only only mistake I think you did was believing in one Nigeria, only to be killed by those you supported.

But,I guess you must have made the decision based on the prevailing circumstances (then).

We,the younger ones must soldier on.

THE SUN MUST SET FORTH AT DAWN.

4 Likes 1 Share

Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by Freemancipation: 6:55am On Aug 01, 2017
In the last days of ken saro wiwa, he showed up to an ohaneze ndigbo meeting in Enugu uninvited and pleaded for forgiveness from igbos. He understood at that moment that he has been used by the north just like adaka boro to betray his brothers.

15 Likes 1 Share

Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by pazienza(m): 7:36am On Aug 01, 2017
He spoke of injustice, yet he proudly and shamelessly lived in a building in PH, his then Northern and Yoruba friends helped him dispossess from an Igbo man who worked and sweated off the sun to buy the land and build the house, only to have it renamed abandoned property, and for hawks like Saro Wiwa to possess.

What goes around comes around. Also heard that Saro was responsible for the death of some Ogoni men who opposed his pro Arewa-Oduanistan civil war and immediate post civil war stance.

RIP to the dead.

11 Likes

Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by ozowarac: 7:37am On Aug 01, 2017
We must continue, all hail Biafrans! Freedom.

7 Likes 1 Share

Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by Amarabae(f): 7:40am On Aug 01, 2017
He loved his ogoni people.
Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by 989900: 8:05am On Aug 01, 2017
Saro Wiwa, a warrior.
A selfless man.

Eternal shame on you Abacha, and your family.

The same Abacha one scammer: Daniel Kanu, vigorously campaigned for to remain in power perpetually.



1 Like

Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by farouk0403(m): 8:38am On Aug 01, 2017
proeast:
"Ken" is obviously a Christian, he used that line to appeal to the jihadists. He was obviously jittery when he realized his fate and all his calls on the Niger Deltans to arose and fight wasnt heeded. Despite his faith in Nigeria, he was still killed like a chicken! I could make comparisons with Nnamdi Kanu's trial and how he stood firmly in challenging the authorities, even to the extent of lambasting the biased judges and Buhari, and how the Igbo nation rose to his defence with full force even in the face of death! It shows that Nigeria is a bully & like all bulies, cowardly intimidates only the timid. Nnamdi Kanu is smart! God Bless Biafra!!!

Why do you need to compare him with KANU? they have nothing in common.

I just ask a simple question of yes/no but you decide to write an article for me.

1 Like

Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by fratermathy(m): 9:03am On Aug 01, 2017
Freemancipation:
In the last days of ken saro wiwa, he showed up to an ohaneze ndigbo meeting in Enugu uninvited and pleaded for forgiveness from igbos. He understood at that moment that he has been used by the north just like adaka boro to betray his brothers.

Please provide proof of this claim you just made.

2 Likes

Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by fratermathy(m): 9:04am On Aug 01, 2017
pazienza:
He speak of injustice, yet he proudly and shamelessly lived in a building in PH, his then Northern and Yoruba friends helped him dispossess from an Igbo man who worked and sweated off the sun to buy the land and build the house, only to have it renamed abandoned property, and for hawks like Saro Wiwa to possess.

What goes around comes around. Also heard that Saro was responsible for the death of some Ogoni men who opposed his pro Arewa-Oduanistan civil war and immediate post civil war stance.

RIP to the dead.

Only a pained person such as yourself can lie against the dead. Have you no shame?

2 Likes 1 Share

Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by Raintaker(m): 9:06am On Aug 01, 2017
guterMann:
Rest on Rest on Ken Saro-Wiwa,

You were one of a kind,your type does not come in every generation, it's safe to say that Niger Delta is yet to have a man like you.Selfless ,fearless, and not looking for personal aggrandizement.

The only only mistake I think you did was believing in one Nigeria, only to be killed by those you supported.

But,I guess you must have made the decision based on the prevailing circumstances (then).

We,the younger ones must soldier on.

THE SUN MUST SET FORTH AT DAWN.


[s]
guterMann:
Rest on Rest on Ken Saro-Wiwa,

You were one of a kind,your type does not come in every generation, it's safe to say that Niger Delta is yet to have a man like you.Selfless ,fearless, and not looking for personal aggrandizement.

The only only mistake I think you did was believing in one Nigeria, only to be killed by those you supported.

But,I guess you must have made the decision based on the prevailing circumstances (then).

We,the younger ones must soldier on.

THE SUN MUST SET FORTH AT DAWN.


[/s]
guterMann:
Rest on Rest on Ken Saro-Wiwa,

You were one of a kind,your type does not come in every generation, it's safe to say that Niger Delta is yet to have a man like you.Selfless ,fearless, and not looking for personal aggrandizement.

The only only mistake I think you did was believing in one Nigeria, only to be killed by those you supported.

But,I guess you must have made the decision based on the prevailing circumstances (then).

We,the younger ones must soldier on.

THE SUN MUST SET FORTH AT DAWN.


Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by fratermathy(m): 9:08am On Aug 01, 2017
farouk0403:


Why do you need to compare him with KANU? they have nothing in common.

I just ask a simple question of yes/no but you decide to write an article for me.

Don't mind them. They seem to have quickly forgotten that KSW was anti-Biafra and even fought actively against the notion of Biafra. His death, though regrettable, was the product of a failed system, the same system that all Nigerians must collectively confront once and for all. Until such a time when Nigerians will heed the call of KSW to rise to the occasion, nothing will change. Even if the country divides into 30 parts, all of them will inherit the failed system because we ourselves are the problem.
Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by Nwakaumu(m): 9:12am On Aug 01, 2017
Saro wiwa,like adaka boro, deserved what he got and got what he deserved.he sabotaged the biafran struggle by working with nigeria army to kill igbo people, thinking that nigeria govt would reward him handsomely as a loyal stooge.his hatred for igbo people spelled his doom.He is tribal bigot who did not see anybody outside his tiny ogoni clan as worthy to be considered a human,thereby rendering his struggle a narrow clanish effort that didnt appeal to the outsiders who might rally around him during his imprisoment "Any biafran that goes to serve the hausa-fulani would come back in regret"Nnamdi Kanu.

11 Likes

Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by farouk0403(m): 9:15am On Aug 01, 2017
fratermathy:


Don't mind them. They seem to have quickly forgotten that KSW was anti-Biafra and even fought actively against the notion of Biafra. His death, though regrettable, was the product of a failed system, the same system that all Nigerians must collectively confront once and for all. Until such a time when Nigerians will heed the call of KSW to rise to the occasion, nothing will change. Even if the country divides into 30 parts, all of them will inherit the failed system because we ourselves are the problem.

Well said
Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by Nobody: 9:19am On Aug 01, 2017
Ken generations after your were cowards fighting for crumbs from shell and your elders are also fools, quick to defend whoever gives them the largest share... Another man like you has been reborn in Nnamdi Kanu

7 Likes

Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by BiafraBushBoy(m): 9:29am On Aug 01, 2017
He died the death of a fool... Shame on him...!!

Same will happen to all those that continues to support this failed asshole country called Nigeria!!

Stupid Ken Saro wiwa... I just wana say.. "Bleep YOU!!"

#piss

11 Likes 2 Shares

Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by Nobody: 9:39am On Aug 01, 2017
989900:
Saro Wiwa, a warrior.
A selfless man.

Eternal shame on you Abacha, and your family.

The same Abacha one scammer: Daniel Kanu, vigorously campaigned for to remain in power perpetually.



The same Abacha shameless Afenifere leaders received bribe from Abacha to betray Abiola their Son

6 Likes

Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by oganology33(m): 9:49am On Aug 01, 2017
Sadly, we (Niger Deltans) Neva still get sense.

1 Like 1 Share

Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by honourhim: 9:50am On Aug 01, 2017
Its possible Ken reaped the fruits of the evil seed he sowed as revealed in this article below.




Someone wrote :

The biggest crime committed against the Ogoni people was the killing of Ken Saro Wiwa and his eight colleagues. Their crime was that they mobilized their people against the exploitation of their land. The tribunal was headed by Justice Ibrahim Auta. Other members of the tribunal were Justice Etowa Eyo Arikpo, Lt Col. Hameed Ibrahim Ali (the incumbent Comptroller General of Customs), while the government prosecutor was Mr Joseph Bodurin Daudu SAN.

The Provisional Ruling Council (PRC), the highest decision-making body of the Abacha regime that took the decision to kill Saro Wiwa comprised General Abacha, Maj. General Patrick Aziza (Minister of Communications under Abacha); Major Gen. Tajudeen Olarenwaju (GOC); General Abdulsalami Abubakar (Chief of Defence Staff); Lt. General Oladipo Diya (Chief of General Staff); Maj. Gen. Victor Malu (GOC); Ibrahim Coomasie (Inspector General of Police); Mike Akhigbe (Chief of Naval Staff); Maj. General Ishaya Bamaiyi (Chief of Army Staff); Nsikak Eduok (Chief of Air Staff), and Lt. Gen. Jeremiah Useni (Minister of the Federal Capital Territory). There was no Igbo man.
It was Chief Emeka Anyaoku, an Igbo man, who as the secretary-general of the commonwealth of nations, that led a protest that made the Commonwealth of Nations to rise to the occasion, and warned Abacha not to carry out his wicked act. Although he later did, the Commonwealth under Anyaoku sanctioned Nigeria.

Today, ask an Ogoni man to show you his enemy, he will point at an Igbo man.
May the spirit of Saro Wiwa, and his eight colleagues hunt you for your foolishness.. An eye opener..Paul Achalla And we said;

Kenule Saro Wiwa was the champion of that foolishness. A man educated at the famous Government College Umuahia ( Fishers) and University of Nigeria,vNsukka. He led the federal forces against the Biafrans and for his betrayal was made Administrator of South east state. He asked that Igbo properties be declared abandoned properties and be forfeited to them. He personally took over Ojukwu father's property in Port Harcourt which he occupied at a time with a certain Lt. Sani Abacha his friend and killer.

To rub in the humiliation of Igbos whom he hated so much, he wrote " Toad for Supper" which was a mockery of how they made Igbos suffer so much during the war that they fed on toads and lizards. He encouraged the Ikkwerres to deny their Igboness and assisted Elechi Amadi to invent the corruption of Igbo names by adding "r" and "y" to form jargons like Rumuokoro and Oyibo instead of Umuokoro and Obigbo. This they said is Ikkwerre a distinct language and tribe.

It is important to note that Ken Sarowiwa was not killed by his co travelers for agitating for environmental rights. Environmental rights was one of his pastimes which he used to extort money and exert influence on government and oil companies. He was killed for the murder of five Ogoni chiefs( Chief Fugbara, Kogbara Kobani et al) . These were men who were opposed to his immoral and outlandish lifestyle and actually wanted a more responsible engagement with government and oil companies.

He labelled them vultures. Masterminded and led a mob attack on these men and killed the five of them in a single day. It was a murder trial and environmental issues was not on the charge sheet. He was found guilty, convicted and hanged. His friend and collaborator in arms, now Gen Sani Abacha was the Head of state. It was not in vain that Ojukwu, (may his soul find peace), made effort to see him at Port Harcourt prison before his execution. Of course all effort to save him by the emasculated Igbos had failed. Emeka Anyaoku did his best. God bless him. Ojukwu visited him and greeted him " Good morning" in broad day light. The Igbo spirit is a forgiving one, the day the Yoruba, Efik, Ibibio, Rivers, Ijaw people will come to terms

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Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by Sprumbabafather: 9:53am On Aug 01, 2017
I remember when Ojuukwu went to meet Saro Wiwa in prison, his greeting to Saro Wiwa was, "Good morning this evening, Saro Wiwa"

7 Likes 1 Share

Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by Nobody: 10:18am On Aug 01, 2017
smiley
Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by Melvinsofty: 10:23am On Aug 01, 2017
All this foolish Biafra people on this thread he died a hero unlike that coward ojukwu that ran away to cote d ivoire... See them mumus
Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by jacyhelen(f): 10:28am On Aug 01, 2017
Lovely...He tried but Kanu is wiser.

1 Like

Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by adetayo234: 11:04am On Aug 01, 2017
proeast:
"Ken" is obviously a Christian, he used that line to appeal to the jihadists. He was obviously jittery when he realized his fate and all his calls on the Niger Deltans to arose and fight wasnt heeded. Despite his faith in Nigeria, he was still killed like a chicken! I could make comparisons with Nnamdi Kanu's trial and how he stood firmly in challenging the authorities, even to the extent of lambasting the biased judges and Buhari, and how the Igbo nation rose to his defence with full force even in the face of death! It shows that Nigeria is a bully & like all bulies, cowardly intimidates only the timid. Nnamdi Kanu is smart! God Bless Biafra!!!

You are wrong. Ken Saro Wiwa would still be alive today if Nigeria wasn't in military regime during his agitation. Kanu would be court-martialed and summarily murdered already if we are still under military rule today.
Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by pazienza(m): 12:25pm On Aug 01, 2017
fratermathy:


Only a pained person such as yourself can lie against the dead. Have you no shame?

That Ken Saro Wiwa lived in an abandoned Igbo property in PH and gloated publicly over Igbo loss post Civil war, was a public knowledge .

9 Likes

Re: The Last Statement Of Ken Saro Wiwa At The Military Tribunal In 1995 by Dereformer(m): 1:09pm On Aug 01, 2017
EkoErrands:
THE LAST STATEMENT OF KEN SARO WIWA AT THE MILITARY TRIBUNAL IN 1995

My lord, since my arrest on the 21st of May, 1994 I have been subjected to physical and mental torture, held incommunicado and denied food for weeks and medical attention for months.

My seventy-four year old mother has been whipped and arrested, my wife beaten and threatened with detention, the three telephone lines to my office and residence cut and they remain cut to this day, my office and home have been ransacked on three different occasions and personal and family property, official files and documents taken away without documentation.

I have been calumniated in the press and on satellite television before the whole world by a Rivers State government anxious to prejudice the mind of the public and to convince that public of my guilt even before trial. Only recently, before the United Nations Committee for the Eradication of Racism and Discrimination in Geneva, an official delegation of the Federal Government which included the Special Adviser on Legal Affairs to the Head of State, Professor Yazudu, declared me responsible for the murders which are the subject of this Tribunal, even before Tribunal has found against me or anyone else.

The fact that a case of homicide is being charged before a Tribunal set up under Decree No. 2 of 1987 speaks for itself. I am aware of the many strictures laid against the decree and this Tribunal by local and international observers. All the same, I have followed the proceedings here with keen and detailed interest, not only because I am charged before this Tribunal, but also because, as a writer, I am a custodian of the conscience of society. I regret that the legal counsel I freely chose, Gani Fawhimi, the human rights hero and pride of this country, was forced to withdraw. His withdrawal has denied credibility to this trial.

With the permission of the Tribunal, I would now like to make a filmic representation which will graphically demonstrate all that I have said here and amplify the details thereof.

My lord, we all stand before history. I am a man of peace, of ideas. Appalled by the denigrating poverty of my people who live on a richly-endowed land, distressed by their political marginalization and economic strangulation, angered by the devastation of their land, their ultimate heritage, anxious to preserve their right to life and to a decent living, and determined to usher to this country as a whole a fair and just democratic system which protects everyone and every ethnic group and gives us all a valid claim to human civilization, I have devoted all my intellectual and material resources, my very life, to a cause in which I have total belief and from which I cannot be blackmailed or intimidated.

I have no doubt at all about the ultimate success of my cause, no matter the trials and tribulations which I and those who believe with me may encounter on our journey. Nor imprisonment nor death can stop our ultimate victory.

I repeat that we all stand before history. I and my colleagues are not the only ones on trial. Shell is here on trial and it is as well that it is represented by counsel said to be holding a watching brief. The company has, indeed, ducked this particular trial, but its day will surely come and the lessons learnt here may prove useful to it for there is no doubt in my mind that the ecological war the company has waged in the delta will be called to question sooner than later and the crimes of that war duly punished. The crime of the company's dirty wars against the Ogoni people will also be punished.

On trial also is the Nigerian nation, its present rulers and all those who assist them. Any nation which can do to the weak and disadvantaged what the Nigerian nation has done to the Ogoni, loses a claim to independence and to freedom from outside influence.

I am not one of those who shy away from protesting injustice and oppression, arguing that they are expected from a military regime. The military do not act alone. They are supported by a gaggle of politicians, lawyers, judges, academics and businessmen, all of them hiding under the claim that they are only doing their duty, men and women too afraid to wash their pants of their urine. We all stand on trial, my lord, for by our actions we have denigrated our country and jeopardized the future of our children.

As we subscribe to the sub-normal and accept double standards, as we lie and cheat openly, as we protect injustice and oppression, we empty our classrooms, degrade our hospitals, fill our stomachs with hunger and elect to make ourselves the slaves of those who subscribe to higher standards, pursue the truth, and honour justice, freedom and hard work.

I predict that the scene here will be played and replayed by generations yet unborn. Some have already cast themselves in the role of villains, some are tragic victims, some still have a chance to redeem themselves. The choice is for each individual.

I predict that a denouement of the riddle of the Niger delta will soon come. The agenda is being set at this trial. Whether the peaceful ways I have favoured will prevail depends on what the oppressor decides, what signals it sends out to the waiting public.

In my innocence of the false charges I face here, in my utter conviction, I call upon the Ogoni people, the peoples of the Niger delta, and the oppressed ethnic minorities of Nigeria to stand up now and fight fearlessly and peacefully for their rights. History is on their side, God is on their side. For the Holy Quran says in Sura 42, verse 41: "All those who fight, when oppressed incur no guilt, but Allah shall punish the oppressor." Come the day.

Ken Saro-Wiwa
Port Harcourt
21st September, 1995.

..copied.


They lost it when they joined the Hausa/fulani and the yorubas to fight their brothers, the igbos.

They lost it when they sabotaged the only choice they have for freedom in 1967.

They lost it when they believe the lies that igbos are after their oil.

They lost it when they confiscated the properties of their closest neighbours in the name of abandoned property.

They lost it when they forgot that they have a common history with their igbo brothers.

They lost it when they forgot that there are igbos in their midst.

The lost it when they believe that the Hausa/fulani and the yorubas have them at heart.

The lost it when they fail to see the lies called Nigeria.

They lost it and will continue to loose it.

Bye saro wiwa. Those you loved so much killed you and have continued and will continue to kill your brothers.

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