Nearly 20 people were injured Wednesday after police in Mandalay region fired rubber bullets and tear gas into a crowd protesting construction at a coal-powered cement plant that is operated as part of a joint venture between a local firm and a Chinese partner, RFA reported.

Residents of Kyaukse district’s Patheingyi township began their protest against the Alpha Cement Plant near Aungthbyae village on Tuesday evening, demanding compensation for land they say they lost when an 18-foot-wide road was built as part of the project, and urging authorities to address an influx of hundreds of Chinese employees who are working at the site.

Moe Lin, the assistant chief of Aungthbyae village, told RFA’s Myanmar Service that protesters had blocked vehicles owned by factory operator Myanmar Conch Cement Co. Ltd. from passing through the village, and early on Wednesday morning, police moved to forcibly disperse the crowd.