Ken Saro-Wiwa
(1941-1995)
By: Ashley Oberg and Madison
Silence Would Be Treason; Last Writings of Ken Saro-Wiwa
He spent a lot of time reading news articles on a laptop that he smuggled into detention. This way he had a sense of connection to his people and was aware of happenings of the outside world. During his time in detention, Saro-Wiwa wrote many short books and poems. Some of his poems resemble chants such as the poem titled MOSOP.
The Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People was founded in 1990. The movement follows the motto, "Freedom, Peace, and Justice."
A Month and a Day: A Detention Diary
Along with the poems and letters, Saro-Wiwa's detention diary gives an in depth look towards the thoughts of the leader during his detainment. By experiencing first hand the motions of imprisonment for the cause of justice for the Ogoni people, readers are given the chance to place themselves within the movement. Each daily account of Saro-Wiwa contains traces of courage laced with confidence in the cause. This hopeful demeanor heeds towards the importance of perseverance through adversity and the promise of a better future.
While the attitude of Saro-Wiwa is both inspirational and important for readers to understand in the effectiveness of environmental journalism, it is the connectives Saro-Wiwa practices that makes this diary relevant. Throughout the chapters, Saro-Wiwa demonstrates that even while being detained he is the full fledged force pushing along the movement. In chapter five, Saro-Wiwa gives an account of a particular Ogoni man who he had befriended.
"A wise man, he had a thorough knowledge of Nigerian politics and had met and interviewed some of the best known Nigerian politicians, including Obafemi Awolowo" (Saro-Wiwa, 118).
This passage demonstrates Saro-Wiwa's ability to make connections with the Ogoni people and truly understand their cause. This focus on the people of the area infested demonstrates the egocentric notion that to care about an environmental issue, it is often left out of consideration people as the victims as well. A Month and a Day through out is spattered with Saro-Wiwa's philosophies on the effects of colonized Nigeria.
"Applied to the Ogoni, we should say British imperialism imposed on them oil exploitation and the Nigerian nation-state, both powerful and dangerous forces which together spelt omnicide in the Ogoni" (190).
This depiction of the Ogoni as a mico-minority to both Nigeria and the British connects towards the writings of Rob Nixon in his "Pipedreams" chapter of Slow Violence. Nixon goes into depth the dynamic of groups within the Nigeria state and their partnerships with European powers, which in turn harms the homeland of those same Nigerian groups. The most shocking part of these partnerships is that it is not simply the colonized influential Shell and Chevron reaping the Niger River Delta bare. Nixon stresses the example of slow violence spreading, seeping into the Nigeria based regimes that have joined the oil game (Slow Violence, 2). It is this concept that if the locals were not to step in on the oil distribution, they simply would have their homeland's resources ripped away from their grasp without a drop to spare for themselves. "Pipedreams" represents Saro-Wiwa's ferocity for justice for the Ogoni by connecting the slippery-slope Nigerians face when trying to get a grasp on their depleting resources.
A Month and a Day: A Detention Diary
Pipedreams
Silence Would Be Treason; Last Writings of Ken Saro-Wiwa
Ken Saro-Wiwa's last writings are found in this compilation of letters and poems. By reading his letters that were sent to Sr. Majella, readers are able to get strong sense of the passion Saro-Wiwa had in his cause and for the justice of the Ogoni people. The letters consist of information explaining what the current situation is involving his detention, where the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (otherwise known as MOSOP) is at going up against officials, as well as giving insight on his personal life and beliefs. While he was in detention he writes of his living conditions. Although he was not allowed to have visitors or the right to speak to his lawyer or doctor, Saro-Wiwa managed to remain in high spirits."I have great faith in God, in the justness of my cause & in the belief in eventual VICTORY."
He spent a lot of time reading news articles on a laptop that he smuggled into detention. This way he had a sense of connection to his people and was aware of happenings of the outside world. During his time in detention, Saro-Wiwa wrote many short books and poems. Some of his poems resemble chants such as the poem titled MOSOP.
The Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People was founded in 1990. The movement follows the motto, "Freedom, Peace, and Justice."
A Month and a Day: A Detention Diary
Along with the poems and letters, Saro-Wiwa's detention diary gives an in depth look towards the thoughts of the leader during his detainment. By experiencing first hand the motions of imprisonment for the cause of justice for the Ogoni people, readers are given the chance to place themselves within the movement. Each daily account of Saro-Wiwa contains traces of courage laced with confidence in the cause. This hopeful demeanor heeds towards the importance of perseverance through adversity and the promise of a better future.
While the attitude of Saro-Wiwa is both inspirational and important for readers to understand in the effectiveness of environmental journalism, it is the connectives Saro-Wiwa practices that makes this diary relevant. Throughout the chapters, Saro-Wiwa demonstrates that even while being detained he is the full fledged force pushing along the movement. In chapter five, Saro-Wiwa gives an account of a particular Ogoni man who he had befriended.
"A wise man, he had a thorough knowledge of Nigerian politics and had met and interviewed some of the best known Nigerian politicians, including Obafemi Awolowo" (Saro-Wiwa, 118).
This passage demonstrates Saro-Wiwa's ability to make connections with the Ogoni people and truly understand their cause. This focus on the people of the area infested demonstrates the egocentric notion that to care about an environmental issue, it is often left out of consideration people as the victims as well. A Month and a Day through out is spattered with Saro-Wiwa's philosophies on the effects of colonized Nigeria.
"Applied to the Ogoni, we should say British imperialism imposed on them oil exploitation and the Nigerian nation-state, both powerful and dangerous forces which together spelt omnicide in the Ogoni" (190).
This depiction of the Ogoni as a mico-minority to both Nigeria and the British connects towards the writings of Rob Nixon in his "Pipedreams" chapter of Slow Violence. Nixon goes into depth the dynamic of groups within the Nigeria state and their partnerships with European powers, which in turn harms the homeland of those same Nigerian groups. The most shocking part of these partnerships is that it is not simply the colonized influential Shell and Chevron reaping the Niger River Delta bare. Nixon stresses the example of slow violence spreading, seeping into the Nigeria based regimes that have joined the oil game (Slow Violence, 2). It is this concept that if the locals were not to step in on the oil distribution, they simply would have their homeland's resources ripped away from their grasp without a drop to spare for themselves. "Pipedreams" represents Saro-Wiwa's ferocity for justice for the Ogoni by connecting the slippery-slope Nigerians face when trying to get a grasp on their depleting resources.
“The men who ordained and supervised this show of shame, this tragic charade, are frightened by the word, the power of ideas, the power of the pen....They are so scared of the word that they do not read. And that will be their funeral" -Ken Saro-Wiwa
Works CitedA Month and a Day: A Detention Diary
Pipedreams
[This page needs significant attention and development. Include the authors' byline, original titles and section headings, and develop your reading of Saro-Wiwa's works with more concrete details of scenes and passages from the writings. Shouldn't there also be a section here on A Month and a Day? Engage with the secondary scholarship of Rob Nixon ("Pipedreams" chapter from Slow Violence we all read early on) and Ogaga Okuyade. Along with way, you'll need to provide some context--for example, explaining what MOSOP is (or at least spelling it out the first time) and cross-referencing with the context pages of our site.]
