By Suleiman Anyalewechi
In a rare judicial pronouncement, an Enugu State High Court, sitting in Enugu, the State capital, on Thursday, February 5, 2026, ordered the British Government to pay the sum of £20million pounds each to families of the 21 protesting Enugu miners killed in 1949 by agents of the British Colonial Administration in Nigeria.
The Source reports that the 21 protesting miners were, on November 18, 1949, at the Iva Valley Coal mine, Enugu, shot and killed by the representatives of the British Colonial Administration in the Eastern Region during a peaceful protest.
About 51 other miners, said to be protesting against excruciating working conditions, racially induced wage disparity, unpaid back wages, as well as a demand for an improved welfare packages, were also injured during the incident.
Ruling on a motion on notice filed on behalf of the victims and their families by a human rights activist, Mazi Greg Onoh, trial Judge, Honourable Justice Anthony Onovo, held that the 1949 killings of the protesting miners was unlawful, and represent a serious case of the violation of the right to life of the victims.
Listed as respondents in the suit were the British Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, British Government and Federal Government of Nigeria as 1st, 2nd and 3rd respondents, while the Attorney General and Minister of Justice of Nigeria and the Head of the Commonwealth, Government of the United Kingdom were listed as 4th and 5th respondents respectively.
Justice Onovo ordered the British Government to pay each and every of the 21 miners the sum of £20 million as general compensation, alongside a formal apology.
He held that the British Government, as a matter of fact must take responsibility and offer reparations to the families of the murdered 21 coal miners over the unfortunate incident.
“The defenceless coal miners were only asking for improved working conditions; they were not embarking on any violent action against the authorities, yet they were shot and killed.
“The 1st, 2nd, 5th and 6th respondents should pay £20 million per victim, totaling £420 million, payable by the British Government as effective remedy and compensation for the violations of the the victims’ right to life.
“They will also pay post-judgment interest at 10 percent annum until fully paid while claims for pre-judgment interest and examplary damages is hereby refused” Justice Onovo ruled.
The trial Judge directed that the written apologies to the families of the victims should be specifically published in Nigeria’s Daily Sun, Independent and The Punch Newspapers, in addition to three leading national newspapers in the United Kingdom, with emphasis on the historical injustice of the incident.
Justice Onovo ordered that while proofs of the said publications must be filed in the court within 60 days of ruling, that of the payment of compensation should be tendered within the 90 days from the date of judgment.
Consequently, the trial Judge directed the Federal Government of Nigeria to, within 60 days, engage its British counterpart with a view to securing full and effective remedies and reparations as ordered by the court.
Justice Onovo had, also, while affirming the jurisdiction of the court to entertain the matter, dismissed a preliminary objection filed by the representative of the Federal Government in that regard.
“The argument by the representative of the Federal Government that Nigeria was still under colonial rule when the killings were committed is hereby struck out”, the Judge ruled.
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