The Tamil Film Directors' Union has strongly condemned the brutal police firing at protestors in the Thoothukudi (also known as Tuticorin) district of Tamil Nadu. Thirteen people were killed and over 60 have been injured.
In a statement issued today, the president of the Directors' Union, Vikraman said, "We strongly condemn the brutal and unjust act of the police which shot dead 13 civilians protesting against the expansion of the Sterlite Copper plant in Thoothuthukudi. We express our deepest sympathies to the families of the 13 people killed in police firing in Thoothukudi.
"The people of Thoothukudi have been complaining that they have been losing lives for over 20 years because of the hazardous plant there. We condemn the move to open fire on the protestors instead of giving a proper solution to their problem."
"A solution to this problem cannot be found through police firing. The only permanent solution will be shutting down the plant for good with immediate effect. Our association hereby requests the Tamil Nadu government to work towards acting on this suggestion," he said.
The shooting incident occurred on 22 May when paramilitary forces and the police fired at a crowd gathered to protest against Sterlite, a copper mining company. According to the police, the gathered protestors began pelting stones at the Collectorate and the police had to open fire.