Hard-hit Visayas strikes back: Supertyphoon Odette survivors bring Shell to court over climate harm
- Media Communications
- 7 days ago
- 3 min read
Quezon City, Philippines — More than a hundred people from Cebu, Bohol, and other parts of the Visayas region take giant oil company Shell to court to hold the latter accountable for Supertyphoon Odette (International Name: Rai), one of the deadliest climate catastrophes to ever ravage the Philippines.
It is the first case to directly link death and destruction in the Global South to a fossil fuel giant in the Global North. In support of the case, claimants also launched “The Odette Case,” an international campaign, with the help of the Philippine Movement for Climate Justice (PMCJ), Greenpeace, the Legal Rights and Natural Resources Center (LRC), and Uplift, a London-based public interest group.
Survivors involved in the case seek justice and financial compensation from Shell, arguing that the company’s petroleum industry fueled global warming, supercharging typhoons like Odette. Shell, established in 1907, is responsible for more than two percent of global carbon emissions, nearly ten times more than the Philippines. The country is among those suffering the worst impacts; it is now the most-disaster-prone country for the fourth consecutive year, despite being responsible for only 0.21% of global carbon emissions since records began.
“It is utterly enraging to see the same communities devastated by Odette in 2021 suffer more typhoons, intensifying in both speed and scale. For our people, survival has become a full-time job, yet governments and corporations still act as if it is business as usual. Enough is enough. We fight back and hold companies like Shell accountable for shamelessly profiting from the planet’s destruction,” said Ellenor Bartolome, PMCJ senior executive officer for policy, campaigns, and communications.
Recently, scientists discovered that global warming has nearly increased the probability of an Odette-like calamity in the Philippines. Over 1,800 Filipinos were affected by Odette, where 405 died, 1,371 were injured, and 521 were missing.
“Unya pananglitan ug moingon sila ug, ‘Nganong kami man inyong pasanginlan nga kuan?’ Ato lang i-kuan nga tungod sa kanang mga trahedya nga kanang mikuan diri, misulod diri sa Pilipinas. Maglibog ko unsay akong isulti ni ana kay ug moingon sila nga, moingon ta nga, ‘Kamoy hinungdan aning mga katalagman diri sa Pilipinas, aning bagyo, mga lunop, kay tungod na sa inyohang kuan.’” [“If Shell were to ask us why we blame them, I will tell them that they are the cause of the tragedy that struck the Philippines, like typhoons, flooding, they did those to the environment. If they were to ask me, I'll say, ’You are the culprits of this calamity, typhoon, flooding, these are due to your pollution.’"], said Mon, not his real name, a claimant from Cebu. He is one of the many claimants who lost their loved ones.
Last week, local media from Cebu revealed that more than five million pesos in donations for calamity relief in Toledo City were unutilized according to the 2024 Commission on Audit report. “In the COA report, the funds intended to assist victims of Typhoon Odette in 2021 were not spent. This is just one of the many proofs of systematic corruption from the local to the national scale. Cebu hosts numerous environmentally destructive projects, ranging from coal-fired power plants, mangrove cutting, and reclamation, to quarrying operations. All of these are man-made disasters, and the same corrupt and rotten system is to blame. We are holding the perpetrators accountable,” said Estela Vasquez, Visayas coordinator of PMCJ.
“In their groundbreaking case, the claimants argue that Shell knew since at least 1965 that fossil fuels could cause dangerous climate change. Instead of changing course, the company ignored the science and tripled its greenhouse gas emissions between 1966 and 2021. This pollution has left a significant impact on disasters like Typhoon Odette, making such events more likely and more severe, and harming people who have contributed next to nothing to the climate crisis,” said Madeleine Lynch, Uplift legal campaigns coordinator.
On Oct. 23, 2025, claimants notified Shell of today's case filing through a Letter Before Action (LBA) sent to Shell plc and The Shell Trading and Transport Company Limited (together, Shell) in the United Kingdom.
"We can’t be shortchanged of the ways we can seek justice for the victims of the climate crisis. This case is filed to send the message across and show to every polluter that the era of impunity is ending. Climate accountability is no longer a mere demand from the people but a consequence of their actions and inaction. Those who have profited while our communities bear the deadly costs of corruption, pollution, and political negligence will finally be made to pay,” said Bartolome. ###
FOR INQUIRIES:
Sheila Abarra
Senior Media and Communications Officer
Philippine Movement for Climate Justice
Viber: +639916692356
WhatsApp: +639380898327