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Africa Policy E-Journal
Nigeria: Niger Delta Updates Africa Policy Electronic Distribution List: an information service provided by AFRICA ACTION (incorporating the Africa Policy Information Center, The Africa Fund, and the American Committee on Africa). Find more information for action for Africa at http://www.africaaction.org +++++++++++++++++++++Document Profile+++++++++++++++++++++
Region: West Africa SUMMARY CONTENTS: This posting contains a press release from Human Rights Watch announcing their latest report on Nigeria, "No Democratic Dividend for Oil Delta." This report, as well as earlier reports on other human rights issues in Nigeria, are available from the Human Rights Watch web site at http://www.hrw.org It also contains several other relevant background documents, including an August 28 advertisement in Nigeria's Guardian newspaper, and excerpts from recent news reports on the passage of legislation eliminating the onshore/offshore distinction, which is expected to result in greater revenues for the oil-producing states. +++++++++++++++++end profile++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Human Rights Watch For more information, please contact:
In London, Bronwen Manby: +44-20-7713-2789
Africa Division, Human Rights Watch (New York, October 22, 2002) - The end of military rule in Nigeria has brought little benefit to the people living in the oil producing communities of the Niger Delta, Human Rights Watch said in a new report released today. Despite the change from military to civilian government in 1999, there is still widespread deployment of army, navy and paramilitary Mobile Police at oil facilities across the delta. Much greater sums of money are flowing from the federal government to the delta region, but ordinary people living in the delta see little if any benefit from these funds, Human Rights Watch said. Discontent among the people of the delta remains high, with both the government and the oil companies. Occupations of oil facilities and other protests directed at the oil companies continue unabated. The 40-page report, "The Niger Delta: No Democratic Dividend," considers several recent violent incidents around oil facilities, and concludes that both the government and the oil company have failed to fulfill their responsibilities. Security forces continue to commit human rights violations with impunity in response to protests and acts of violence at oil facilities. The oil companies remain complicit in many such abuses despite their stated commitment to respect human rights. "The Nigerian government still seems to support oil production at any cost," said Bronwen Manby, deputy director of the Africa Division of Human Rights Watch and author of the report. "And the oil companies too often go along with whatever the government does - or even make things worse." In one case examined in the report, naval personnel carried out a reprisal raid on a village where oil company employees were taken hostage, destroying several dozen houses and killing several people. In another, money paid by an oil company to a community representative has apparently been used by that person to "hire" police to harass and arrest members of an opposing faction in the village. The international oil companies have in recent years also greatly increased the amount of money they spend on community development projects and compensation. But in most cases they have taken insufficient care to monitor the use made of their money. In particular, they have failed to ensure that it does not reinforce factional violence between those who benefit and those who do not. The oil companies also continue to fail to monitor closely security force activity at or near their facilities or where work is being carried out on their behalf, or, in many cases, to intervene with the authorities when abuses are committed. Among the recommendations of Human Rights Watch:
"This week is the anniversary of an army massacre of more than two hundred civilians in Benue State, in central eastern Nigeria," said Manby. "Just as in the case of the destruction of Odi and the abuses in Ogoniland, there has been no accountability for these killings, and President Obasanjo has refused to take action against those alleged to be responsible."
Advertisement in support of women of the Niger Delta
Text available at:
Note: This August 28 advertisement in Nigeria's Guardian newspaper
was initiated by groups in the Niger Delta and overseas
supporters, and signed by Africa Action among other groups,
supporting women protesters against oil companies in the Delta.
Additional background on these issues can be found on the web site
of the Sustainable Energy and Economy Network The advertisement and other messages sent to the oil companies and the Nigerian government were in response to an appeal from Environmental Rights Action / Friends of the Earth (FoE, Nigeria) + Oilwatch Africa. International Secretariat: #214, Uselu-Lagos Road, P. O. Box 10577, Benin City, Nigeria. Tel/Fax: + 234 52 600165 Email: eraction@infoweb.abs.net; Port Harcourt: # 13 Agudama Street, D-Line, Port Harcourt Tel: + 234 84 236365 email: Oilwatch@infoweb.abs.net; Lagos:# 1 Balogun Street, Ikeja E-mail: disera@infoweb.abs.net
We the undersigned want to express our solidarity with the women of the Niger Delta who, at great personal risk, have stood in peaceful protest, calling on the oil companies to clean up their actions. The women and their families have suffered grave social, environmental, and economic costs as a consequence of decades of oil extraction by Shell, Chevron, and others. Some estimate the oil spilled in the Niger Delta to be 10 times greater than the ExxonValdez oil spill in the U. S. that cost $10 billion to clean up. We are alarmed to learn that the women's peaceful protest is being answered with violence. We urge the oil companies to: meet peacefully with all the protestors; ensure that their legitimate concerns regarding compensation for lost livelihoods are adequately addressed; clean up the oil spills and other toxic activity that has spoiled the abundant environment of the Niger Delta; stop all gas flaring; and stop using the Nigerian military as security guards for oil production facilities and in response to nonviolent protests. We further urge the Nigerian Government to peacefully exercise their responsibilities as leaders and not allow the situation to degenerate any further. In solidarity, signed:
Owens Wiwa, African Environmental and Human Development Agency,
Canada
Individuals: ...
Rights Group Happy With New Resource Bill This Day (Lagos) September 12, 2002 By Omon-Julius Onabu, Benin
[excerpts: full article available at The presentation to the National Assembly of a bill for the abolition of the controversial onshore-offshore dichotomy in petroleum resource exploitation in Nigeria has been described as a welcome development that should be supported to become law through the legislative process. The Environmental Rights Action (ERA), also known as "Friends of the Earth Nigeria", made the commendation in a statement by its programmes director, Mr. Godwin Uyi Ojo. ERA criticised the Federal Government for introducing the onshore/offshore distinction, saying the game of "hide-and-seek" have only succeeded in limiting "the capacity of the affected state governments and placed them in a very awkward situation politically and economically. "Indeed, widespread public uproar over the Supreme Court judgement on the onshore/offshore dichotomy shows that victory resides on the part of the people standing up for justice. ... The group called on the National Assembly "to expedite action on the proposed bill so as to ensure its quick passage into law and urgent resolution of the financial crisis being experienced by the affected states" in the Niger-Delta. ERA Chief executive officer, Bassey, said: "the proposed abolition of the obnoxious onshore/offshore dichotomy is a welcome development, the will of the people as demonstrated in their firm agitation for resource control must be respected to stem resource conflicts and allow justice to prevail." ...
Revenue Commission: New Formula to Incorporate Derivation Principle This Day (Lagos) October 28, 2002 By Ayodele Aminu, Lagos
[Excerpts only, full article at: The Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) has said that the new revenue allocation formula that would allocate statutory fund to the three tiers of government would incorporate the application of derivation principle as passed by the two arms of the National Assembly. The Senate and House of Representatives last week passed a presidential bill abrogating the onshore/offshore dichotomy in the application of derivation principle. Speaking after the plenary session of the RMAFC over the weekend, the commission's chairman of Public Relations Committee, Chief Jaypeekay Ajaelu said the commission has deliberated extensively on the new revenue sharing formula before the successful passage of the bill on the derivation principle. The bill is entitled "Allocation of Revenue (Abolition of Dichotomy in the Application of the Principle of Derivation) Act 2002." "With the successful passage of the bill on derivation principle by the National Assembly and the recent Federal Govern-ment representation and submission on the formula, it became imperative for the nation to have an acceptable and just sharing formula which would be legally and constitutionally binding," Ajaelu said in a press statement signed by the RMAFC's Head of Public Relations, Mr Yushau Shuaib. Noting that the derivation principle is part of the constitutional provision on revenue allocation, the RMAFC boss disclosed that the commission is studying the bill with a view to merging it with its general recommendation that would address all the related fiscal issues in totality. ...
Documents previously distributed in the e-journal are
available on the Africa Action website: To be added to or dropped from the e-journal subscription list, write to e-journal@africaaction.org. For more information about reposted material, please contact directly the source mentioned in the posting.
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Africa Policy E-Journal
