Photo from Noo Saro-Wiwa’s Facebook post

Thirty years after his execution, Nigerian environmental and human rights activist Ken Saro-Wiwa has been posthumously pardoned by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. The announcement, made on Nigeria’s Democracy Day, also included national honors for Saro-Wiwa and his eight fellow campaigners, collectively known as the Ogoni Nine, whose 1995 execution sparked global outrage and led to Nigeria’s temporary suspension from the Commonwealth.

Despite the presidential pardon and the conferment of the Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON) onto Saro-Wiwa, the Saro-Wiwa family has urged the government to go further.

In a statement shared on Facebook by his daughter Noo Saro-Wiwa, the family welcomed the symbolic recognition of the Ogoni Nine’s peaceful activism but stressed that a pardon does not equate to justice.

“We appreciate the conferment of Commander Order of the Niger (CON) on our Father and OON on the other eight Ogoni activists in recognition of their peaceful campaign for environmental justice, political and human rights in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria,” the statement reads.

However, the family emphasized that the honors, while appreciated, are not a substitute for a formal declaration of innocence.

“We want to believe that the conferment of these national honours symbolizes the innocence of these heroes and further reinforces the global view that the judgement given almost 30 years ago was flawed and their execution considered to be judicial murder,” the statement continues. “In fact, our father and his compatriots were innocent and peaceful activists who drew the attention of the world to the plight of the Ogoni people who suffered environmental devastation due to oil drilling by Shell.”

Ken Saro-Wiwa was a leading voice in the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (Mosop), which led peaceful protests against multinational oil corporations, particularly Shell, for polluting Ogoniland and devastating local livelihoods. The government responded with a violent crackdown. Saro-Wiwa and eight others—Barinem Kiobel, John Kpuinen, Baribor Bera, Felix Nuate, Paul Levura, Saturday Dobee, Nordu Eawo, and Daniel Gbokoo—were convicted by a secret military tribunal for the murder of four Ogoni chiefs.

Shell has denied any involvement in the executions but many, including Amnesty International, insist that these oil companies must be held accountable for the environmental damage in Nigeria. Per the BBC, “Shell denies wrongdoing and says spills in the region have been caused by sabotage, theft and illegal refining for which the company says it is not liable.”

While Tinubu’s gesture has been praised by some as a “courageous act,” including by Mosop, critics argue that a pardon implies guilt. As Barinem Kiobel’s widow noted, “a pardon is not granted to the innocent.” Amnesty International similarly stated that clemency “falls far short of the justice the Ogoni Nine need.”

In their statement, the Saro-Wiwa family has called on President Tinubu to initiate a formal review of the original judicial process. “While thanking President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for doing the right thing, we further request a review of the judicial proceedings leading to the erroneous judgement, which occasioned such a colossal loss to our family, the Ogoni people and concerned Nigerians,” they wrote. “Such a review will heal all wounds and ensure that further miscarriages of justice are not continuously visited on persons protesting their fundamental rights as guaranteed in the Constitution. We believe that this review will lead to a complete exoneration of our heroes.”

The full trial of the case is set for 2026. With the rise in crackdowns against peaceful protests around the world, Nigeria has the opportunity to rectify a past violence, lead the way towards reparations, and set an example for supporting a democratic peoples’ right to protest. Read the family’s full statement on Facebook here.