Amnesty warns FG against human rights abuses in Niger Delta

Amnesty International has warned the federal government to ensure that the divestment by Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) does not worsen human rights abuses in the Niger Delta region.

The international rights organisation lamented that, already, the operations of the Dutch oil firm in the region have caused a high level of environmental degradation.

The organisation pointed out that Shell’s divestment without cleaning up the environment would further deteriorate human rights in the region, which, it said, has suffered decades of oil pollution.

Amnesty International’s Head of Business and Human Rights, Mark Dummett, stated this in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, on Thursday while presenting a report titled “Tainted Sale? Why Shell’s Divestment from the Niger Delta Must Not Harm Human Rights.”

Dummett tasked the government to ensure that the divestment does not limit Shell’s liabilities without full investigations into and remediation of all existing pollution, maintenance and repair of existing pipelines, and the protection of pipelines from sabotage.

He said, “Amnesty International has documented grievous and enduring human rights abuses resulting from oil contamination in the area, where Shell has operated since the 1950s. Amnesty International is concerned that the proposed sale will deny people already harmed access to adequate remedy and potentially expose many more to future abuses.”

The report recommends a series of safeguards and actions to help protect the rights of people potentially affected by Shell’s planned disposal of its onshore oil interest in the Niger Delta, reportedly valued at about $3 billion.

Dummett noted that for decades, spills have damaged the health and livelihoods of many of the Niger Delta’s inhabitants, adding: “Shell should not be allowed to wash its hands of the problems and leave. Shell has earned billions of dollars from this business, and it must make sure that its withdrawal does not have negative human rights and environmental consequences.

“The government should consider requiring Shell to act as guarantor to ensure any purchaser is capable of making good and remediating damage caused by any future spills and that any buyer is committed to transparency, environmental compliance, consultations with communities, and limiting greenhouse gas emissions.

“By exercising appropriate oversight of Shell’s sale, Nigeria’s incoming administration has a unique opportunity to demonstrate its determination to uphold and protect the human rights of its citizens, including their rights to an adequate standard of living, clean water, and health. We are also calling for effective remedies for people whose rights have long been violated.

“Shell is not uniquely responsible for the devastating oil pollution that blights the Niger Delta.”

Dummett added that other actors in the devastation include federal and state authorities and “they too have the obligation to ensure that Shell’s divestment does not lead to further human rights harm.”