Courtroom orders British govt to pay £420m for 1949 Enugu coal miners bloodbath

The Enugu State Excessive Courtroom has ordered the British authorities to pay £420 million to the households of the 21 coal miners who have been killed on November 18, 1949, throughout a strike on the Iva Valley coal mine in Enugu.

In a ruling on Thursday, Justice Anthony Onovo decided that the killings have been illegal and constituted an extrajudicial violation of the best to life.

He additional directed that every of the households of the victims be compensated with £20 million, totaling £420 million.

The case was filed by human rights activist Greg Onoh, who sought recognition of legal responsibility, an official apology, and reparations for the households of the victims.

The respondents within the go well with included the Secretary of State for the International, Commonwealth and Improvement Workplace, the British authorities, the Federal Authorities of Nigeria, the Lawyer-Normal of the Federation, the Head of the Commonwealth, and the UK authorities.

No authorized illustration was offered for the British authorities, the Secretary of State, the Head of the Commonwealth, or the UK authorities through the proceedings.

In his judgment, Justice Onovo held that the British authorities should be held accountable for the deaths of the coal miners and make reparations to their households. He dominated that the British authorities should subject a proper apology to the households, to be tendered via their attorneys, and publish the apology in each Nigerian and UK newspapers.

“These defenceless coal miners have been asking for improved work situations; they weren’t embarking on any violent motion towards the authorities however have been nonetheless shot and killed,” Onovo said in his judgment.

The choose ordered that the British authorities pay £20 million per sufferer, totaling £420 million, as compensation for the violation of the miners’ proper to life. Moreover, the British authorities was instructed to pay post-judgment curiosity at 10% each year till the quantity is absolutely paid. Claims for pre-judgment curiosity and exemplary damages have been, nevertheless, refused.

Justice Onovo additionally directed the Nigerian authorities to have interaction diplomatically with the British authorities inside 60 days to pursue justice, reparations, and efficient cures for the households.

The tragic occasions of November 1, 1949, unfolded when coal miners on the Iva Valley mine in Enugu went on strike to protest towards unpaid money owed and the tough working situations they endured underneath colonial rule. Coal was a serious supply of power and income for the British colonial authorities on the time.

In response to the strike, the colonial authorities ordered the closure of the Iva Valley coal mine, a call that was met with resistance from the miners. Amid escalating tensions, police chief FS Philip allegedly ordered the taking pictures of the hanging miners, killing 21 and injuring a number of others.

The victims of the bloodbath have been recognized as Sunday Anyasodo, Ani Oha, Andrew J. Obiekwe Okonkwo, Augustine Chiwetalu, Onoh Ugwu, Ngwu Offor, Ndunguba Eze, Okafor Agu, Livinus Ukachunwa, Jonathan Agu Ozoani, Moses Ikegbu Okoloha, Chukwu Ugwu, Thomas Chukwu, Simon Nwachukwu, Agu Alo, Ogbonnia Ani Chima, Nnaji Nwachukwu, William Nwaku, James Onoh Ekeowa, Felix Nnaji, and Ani Nwaekwe.

This landmark ruling has revived requires accountability and reparations for colonial-era atrocities, highlighting the unresolved legacy of the British colonial presence in Nigeria.