On 16th July 2011 Saturday eight platoons of police attacked and lathi
charged peaceful protesters in the village of Nuagaon, Jagatsinghpur
District, Odisha [India]. The protesters, despite being mainly women, were attacked by an entirely male police force, resulting in injuries to several and
serious injuries to one woman, who has now been hospitalised. The protesters were seeking to protect their forests and trees from being cleared by the police as part of the government’s land grab for the POSCO project. After the lathi charge the entire village joined the protest, eventually driving the police back and forcing them to retreat. We strongly condemn this brutal attack on a peaceful protest by people seeking to protect their legal and democratic rights.