The original content of Democracy Now! Headlines appears under the Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 3.0 License (United States). For more, including their other shows and media, visit www.democracynow.org. June 25, 2025 Nigeria Posthumously Pardons the "Ogoni Nine," Including Slain Environmental Activist Ken Saro-Wiwa --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nigeria's government has posthumously pardoned nine activists known as the Ogoni Nine, who were hanged in 1995 after a sham military trial that targeted peaceful protesters demanding an end to oil drilling and environmental damage in the Niger Delta. Among those receiving a pardon is the late Ken Saro-Wiwa, who led the movement against the Shell Oil Company's practices in Ogoniland. In a statement, Amnesty International's Nigeria director said the pardons fall far short of the justice the Ogoni Nine need and deserve. He added, "The execution of these activists nearly 30 years ago has given the Nigerian government and oil companies, including Shell, license to crack down on protests and intimidate people in the Niger Delta who have been demanding justice and an end to their toxic pollution." Click here for our documentary Drilling and Killing: Chevron and Nigeria's Oil Dictatorship. .