Jim Wiwa
Jim Wiwa | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1904 Bane, Ogoniland, Rivers State, Nigeria |
| Died | 1 April 2005 (aged 100–101) |
| Occupation | Traditional ruler |
| Title | Chief of Bane; Chairman, Council of Chiefs of Bane |
| Children | Ken Saro-Wiwa; Owens Wiwa |
| Relatives | Ken Wiwa (grandson) |
Chief Jim Beeson Wiwa (1904 – 1 April 2005) was a chief of the Ogoni people of southern Nigeria, and the chairman of the Council of Chiefs of Bane.[1] He was born in Bane, Rivers State. He was the father of executed playwright and environmentalist Ken Saro-Wiwa[2] and of doctor and human-rights activist Owens Wiwa, and the grandfather of journalist Ken Wiwa.
Life
Wiwa worked as a forest ranger and businessman in addition to his chieftaincy role.[3] His son Ken Saro-Wiwa was educated at a government college in Umuahia and at Stella Maris College in Port Harcourt before becoming a prominent writer, television producer, and human rights activist as president of the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP).[4]
Following Ken Saro-Wiwa's execution by the military government of General Sani Abacha in November 1995, Jim Wiwa outlived his son by nearly a decade. In a 2001 interview, then aged 96, he reflected on the reversal of traditional expectations in Ogoni culture, where he should have been cared for by his son in old age: "No-one is feeding me. I leave the whole thing in the hands of God, but how can I be happy?"[5]
Jim Wiwa died on 1 April 2005 at the age of 100 or 101, having lived through the colonial era, Nigerian independence, the Nigerian Civil War, and the execution of his son.[6]
References
- ↑ Fox, Margalit (9 April 2005). "Jim Wiwa, Nigerian Chief and Father of Dissident, Is Dead". The New York Times. Retrieved 10 May 2014.
- ↑ Winter, Joseph (15 April 2003). "Nigeria's elections in the south". BBC.co.uk. Retrieved 10 May 2014.
- ↑ "1994 Ken Saro-Wiwa". The African Literature Association. Retrieved 2026-06-30.
- ↑ "1994 Ken Saro-Wiwa". The African Literature Association. Retrieved 2026-06-30.
- ↑ "1994 Ken Saro-Wiwa". The African Literature Association. Retrieved 2026-06-30.
- ↑ Fox, Margalit (2005-04-09). "Jim Wiwa Nigerian Chief and Father of Dissident Is Dead". The New York Times. Retrieved 2026-06-30.