Three people were killed during fighting between rival supporters of late author and minority rights campaigner Ken Saro-Wiwa in Nigeria's politically-charged Ogoniland, press reports said Saturday.
The fighting broke out at a service Friday in Bori organized in memory of Saro-Wiwa and eight members of his Movement for the Survival of Ogoni People (MOSOP), the Guardian reported.
Saro-Wiwa and the eight MOSOP members were executed in 1995 after a military tribunal convicted them of the murder of four Ogoni leaders.
The executions attracted international condemnation because many believed the men were killed on trumped-up charges instigated by then military ruler General Sani Abacha, and Nigeria was suspended from the Commonwealth.
The Guardian said that trouble started shortly after MOSOP's new leader, Ledun Mitee, began his address, when other members opposed to his leadership attempted to seize the microphone from him.
"This led to a free-for-all fight, resulting in the death of the three people," the paper quoted an unnamed witness as saying.
It said many people were also injured in the fracas before the police moved in to restore order.
Neither the police nor MOSOP officials were available Saturday to comment on the incident -- LAGOS (AFP)
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