The Unfinished Revolution in Nigeria’s Niger Delta: Prospects for Environmental Justice and Peace

The 1990s heralded waves of spectacular forms of local resistance and globalized protest against oil exploitation and environmental pollution in oil-producing regions of the developing world. One of the most spectacular local uprisings against global oil multinationals was led by the Ogoni people who were protesting against the exploitation and marginalization of oil-producing ethnic minority communities in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. However, the hanging on November 10, 1995 of nine Ogoni ethnic minority and environmental justice activists, including Ken Saro-Wiwa, only served to exacerbate protests in later years. Within a decade, dozens of locally rooted insurgent groups emerged in the Niger Delta and construed themselves as part of the social movement for ethnic minority rights and environmental justice which dates back to colonial times. However, the trajectory of the revolutionary momentum has changed over time, reflecting a mix of progressive, opportunistic and retrogressive trends.
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