By Etuka Sunday
A UK high court will today begin first judgement in a case brought by 15,000 Nigerians from the Bodo community in Niger Delta.
The community was devastated by two massive spills in 2008 and 2009 from a Shell pipeline.
The judgement is expected to be held in a UK Technological and Construction Court in the Rolls building on Fetter Lane, London.
Amnesty International said in a statement that it has been campaigning since 2009 for Shell to clean up the environmental damage it has caused, which has destroyed livelihoods and jeopardised the health of thousands of people living near Shell’s oil facilities in the Niger Delta.
It said, for more than five years the people of Bodo have been living day by day with the devastating consequences of these spills.
Meanwhile, the company claims it has done its best to clean up the area, but that there have since been other spills, caused by thieves attempting to siphon oil from the pipeline.
However, the trial on the merits of the case is expected to take place at the High Court in London in May 2015, making it the first time Shell will face formal proceedings in the UK for its role in the Niger Delta pollution.
