Bankrupt Shell!
The Nigerian government has murdered nine environmental activists, including writer Ken Saro-Wiwa. Nineteen more are awaiting trial for alleged murder and face the death penalty. The activists were framed for their role in resisting Shell Oils' destruction of Ogoniland in Nigeria.
Shell and Chevron (an American oil company) have extracted oil in Ogoniland since 1958. This has resulted in the loss of agricultural land to oil wells, spillages, pipelines and blowouts. Ken Anderson, head of Shell Nigeria, offered to use the companies influence if leaders in Ogoniland called off protests against Shell. They refused.
Ken Saro-Wiwa's closing statement at his trial was, "...the ecological war that the company (Shell) has waged in the Delta will be called to question sooner than later and the crimes of that war duly punished." Protests against Shell have erupted round the world, starting to make his words reality. There have beenhundredsof blockades of Shell garages in: York, Newbury, Norwich, Aberdeen, Cardiff, Cambridge, Oxford, Manchester, Leicester, London, Edinburgh, Loughborough, Lemington Spa, Aberystwyth, Swansea, Brighton... to name but a few. Tactics have varied including York EF! successfully applying for planning permission to put a monument to Ken Saro - Wiwa on a Shell forecourt!
Apart from garages, they have loads of oil depots and offices to do with the rest of their trade. Stop them functioning. Send something heavy like a brick to their freepost address: Shellsmart, Freepost 437, Warrington, Cheshire WA4 6ZZ. Also target the UK Government, one of the largest shareholders.
There is a gathering in Oxford to discuss further actions against Shell, Dec 16th and 17th. A coordinating group may be set up. Contact 0116 2553223 for further info.
Also contact: The Ogoni Community Association - UK, 7 Naseby Tower, 47 Desmond Street, London, SE14 6JS.