On March 7, Novi Sad students in the blockade called on all citizens to participate in a general strike and to join them on the streets. The students of Belgrade University will soon decide whether they will be part of this rebellion
"Take a day off or sick leave, stop working with colleagues, don't go to shops, don't use the services of cafes and restaurants, don't take public transport, don't go to cinemas and theaters".
These are the instructions given by Novi Sad students in the blockade for March 7, when they are planning a new one general strike, but also to take to the streets of their own city.
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On Wednesday, February 26, their colleagues from Belgrade will hold a mass plenums by faculties, where one of the points for discussion and voting will be - whether and potentially in what way to join the people of Novi Sad.
Thus, the Faculty of Law plenum is scheduled for today, when a decision will be made on March 7, the faculty told "Vreme", while the Faculty of Dramatic Arts told "Vremena" that no official decision has yet been made at the plenum.
The Faculty of Philosophy in Belgrade also told Nova that they believe "they will support their colleagues and respond to the call, but the final decision will be made at the plenum."
How did the last general strike go?
The previous general strike, on January 24, was organized by blockade students from Belgrade, and citizens, businessmen and companies massively supported it.
Three large gatherings were organized on the streets - a gathering of high school students, then a student march and a protest by workers in the IT sector. All three groups, at one point, found themselves at the mouth of Ušće in New Belgrade, and this part of the city was blocked for almost the whole day, as a large number of people gathered stopped the traffic.
From clubs, restaurants, through street sellers and bookstores to larger businesses and the media - many boycotted their own jobs that fifth to participate in a general strike and express dissatisfaction with the regime, but also support for students.
That day was also the last day lawyers' strike.
Several organizations and political parties participated in the one-day general strike, a. Throughout the day, the newsrooms of Vremena, Nedeljnik, Birn, Fonet, N1, Nova, Danasa, Sport Club reported on the events related to the general strike.
Numerous nightclubs, restaurants, cafes, cinemas also went on strike. The Association of Film Producers of Serbia, the Association of Film Directors of Serbia, the Association of Screenwriters of Serbia, the Association of Documentaries of Serbia, the Association of Serbian Cinematographers, the Association of Film Actors of Serbia, the Association of Film and Television Sound Designers of Serbia, as well as the Section of Screeners and the Section of Distributors did not work in solidarity.
The independent union of culture of Serbia was in total suspension of work. The Historical Archives of Belgrade, the Center for Graphics did not work either, and the magazine "Lice ulice", a satirical portal, was also on strike. http://Njuz.net .
Numerous small businesses, from hairdressers to non-governmental organizations, stopped that day.
What is a general strike?
A general strike is a strike that involves an entire industry, that is, a branch of the economy or an entire society. Depending on whether it is one branch or the entire economy, the strike has different forms.
The very phrase about a general strike, as a deliberate part of collective bargaining tactics, originated in Great Britain, where the term entered the language in the 1830s, writes Britannica.
French philosophers believed that workers could bring about a social revolution by defeating the managers and owners of capital through a general strike.
General strikes first became possible with the rise of large trade unions in the late 19th century. Two major general strikes took place in Belgium in 1893 and 1902 in support of universal male suffrage. A large-scale strike took place in Sweden in 1902 over similar issues.
The general strike that swept through Russia during the 1905 Revolution forced the Tsar to issue the October Manifesto, in which he promised to approve the country's constitution.
The Swedish General Strike of 1909 showed that major economic reforms could be achieved without resorting to violence. The strike occurred because of the wage freeze policy. Almost half of the country's total workforce went on strike, and the outage lasted a month before the strike was resolved.
In some Asian and African countries, trade unions associated with independence movements often resorted to general strikes as a means of political protest during colonial rule.
From Brazil to Germany
In previous years, there were several examples of a general strike in the world, organized in Brazil, Argentina, France, known for its strong trade union organizations, writes the BBC.
At the beginning of January 2024, Germany was almost paralyzed due to a major railway strike, but also farmers' protests, and Greece is also known for mass union work stoppages due to the economic crisis of 2017.
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