For a long time, Shell has been operating and producing oil in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. The local ethnic group occupying the region are the Ogoni people. In the 1990s, due to the social issues the ethnic group was experiencing, members of the Ogoni formed a human rights group called MOSOP, “Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People.

In the 1990s, Shell due to their drilling operations in Nigeria supported the Nigerian military regime. The social consequence of their support was that the human rights of the Goni people were continually violated.  MOSOP finally responded proactively by unveiling to the world the oppression happening in the region. The human rights violation that the Ogoni people ranges from beating, rape, murder, and execution (Ogoni nine).

The leaders of Shell saw that they can continue exploiting the region due to the lack of policing of corporate social responsibility in their respective markets. Compounding to that, the business leaders of the shell of the time, do not recognize business ethics.

Personally, I find their business practices that are described in the paper very offensive. Today, I have not yet experienced any similar situation as that of suffered by the Ogoni and MOSOP people. For me to prevent corporate crimes like these, the government should be proactive in enforcing laws that prohibit the sale of products that are in violation of human rights.

For the longer term solution, I believe to be able to prevent future cases of inhumane exploitation of ethnic groups, the available pool of corporate leadership should be educated in and have a strong foundation in ethics and social corporate responsibility.