Orissa must avoid forced evictions in Jagatsinghpur:Amensty Int

New Delhi, Apr 12 (UNI) The Amensty International has expressed concern over the reports of farmers in Jagatsinghpur, fearing forced eviction by the Orissa police for the proposed POSCO steel plant and demanded that the state government respect the rights of farmers and provide adequate rehabilitation, resettlement and reparation for the affected.

The human rights organisation said the farmers were protesting against their proposed displacement by the state government for a new industrial project.

Tension has been high in Jagatsinghpur district after 1,000 officers of the state police force encircled Dhinkia, Nuagaon and Gadakujang panchayats, apparently preparing to enter the area.

Several villages in the area have been witnessing protests by farmers for the last 14 months against their displacement due to an integrated steel plant to be set up by the South Korean firm.

The Amnesty International urged that lessons should be learnt from the unfortunate episodes of violence which recently broke out in Kalingar Nagar in Orissa and Nandigram in neighbouring West Bengal. The use of police force in a context where consultations have not been held with protesting local communities resulted in 13 deaths in Kalinga Nagar and at least 14 deaths in Nandigram, apart from serious injuries.

It sought to remind the Orissa government of Principle 9 of the Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials, which says that "law enforcement officials shall not use firearms against persons except in self-defence or defence of others against the imminent threat of death or serious injury, to prevent the perpetration of a particular serious crime involving great threat to life, to arrest a person presenting such a danger and resisting their authority or to prevent his or her escape, and only when less extreme means are insufficient to achieve these objectives." More UNI AJ HS BST1708