Ken Saro-Wiwa’s son dies in London

Ken Saro-Wiwa Jr., son of playwright and oil industry opponent Ken Saro-Wiwa, is photographed during an interview with the Associated Press, Monday, May 4, 2009 in New York. Saro-Wiwa's father and eight others oil industry opponents were executed on Nov. 10, 1995, after a military tribunal convicted them on what were widely viewed as trumped up charges of murdering four political rivals.(AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

Ken Saro-Wiwa Jnr, the son of the late environmentalist, Ken Saro-Wiwa, is dead, the BBC reports.

Mr. Saro-Wiwa Jnr, 47, reportedly died of stroke in London. He was a journalist.

“It is with great sadness that we announce that Ken Saro-Wiwa Jr passed away suddenly. His family are devastated and request privacy at this difficult time,” the report quoted Noo Saro-Wiwa, sister of the late journalist, as saying.

Saro-Wiwa Snr, who was president, Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP) was executed in 1995 by the Sani Abacha-led military regime for what is believed to be his resistance to environmental degradation caused by oil exploration.

“(We are) saddened by the news of the untimely passing of Ken Saro-Wiwa Jnr. He will be missed,” says Paul Arkwright, the British High Commissioner to Nigeria.

Naomi Klein, a Canadian author and social activist, said she was devastated by the news of Mr. Saro-Wiwa’s death.

“Ken Saro-Wiwa Jnr was a friend and a brave, good man. His family had seen too much loss already,” she said.