Tens of thousands of people blocked January 27, 2025 Car commando. It was the first 24-hour blockade of public space in the then new wave of student protests, which began shortly after canopy collapse Novi Sad railway station. Traffic stopped, and one of the most important intersections in the country was transformed into a symbol of resistance, solidarity and memory of the victims.
A year later, students on the same day they announce a new protest. Under the slogan "Knowledge is power", the meeting will be held on January 27, 2026 in front of the building Rectorate of the University of Belgrade, students in the blockade of various faculties announced on their Instagram accounts.
They shared a video that begins with a recording of a protest held in 1997 on the same day, when, in the midst of student demonstrations, the then patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church, Pavle, led a column that went to the Temple of St. Sava through the central streets of Belgrade.
"Students invite you to Savindan, the day of the first Serbian educator. Knowledge is power! January 27, Rectorate of the University of Belgrade", they said, among other things, in the invitation to the gathering.
From 1997. to 2026.
Then Saint Sava, apart from being a church holiday and a school celebration, in recent history rebel Serbia occupies a special place.
29 years ago, on this very day, the police cordon that blocked Kolarčeva Street in Belgrade for days and did not allow students to pass, took cover so that the liturgy led by Patriarch Pavle could pass.
Photo: Screenshot/YouTube/ 🦅ORLOVIĆ_1389_PAVLE🦅Patriarch Pavle led the column in 1997.
The students of the Belgrade faculties previously stood continuously in Kolarčeva street for 178 hours and 24 minutes, in front of the police cordon in full equipment to break up demonstrations.
The police cordon, set up on the evening of January 19 near the Palace of Albany, prevented the protest column from passing and did not move from there for a whole week. In front of the cordon, the students also stood constantly, and the then head of the Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC) played a key role in moving the cordon. The police withdrew in the night between January 26 and 27, so that the next day's liturgy could pass to the Church of St. Sava.
It was a symbolic victory for students and citizens in the showdown with Slobodan Milošević's regime.
Student and civil protests then continued.
The reason for the already two-month-long demonstrations was the regime's attempt to dispute the victory of the opposition coalition "Together" in more than 40 municipalities, including Belgrade, Novi Sad, Niš and Kragujevac, by falsifying the minutes from the second round of local elections on November 17, 1996. From the fall of 1996 to the spring of 1997, the streets were filled with police and protesters. Participants remember caning, tear gas, threats.
Autocommand block 2025.
Photo: FoNet/Velimir IlićBlockade of Autokomanda on January 27, 2025.
With the slogan "Under our (Auto)Command" students in Belgrade blocked one of the most important roads in Belgrade for 24 hours on January 27, 2025, saying that they will not forget the victims in Novi Sad and that they will not give up their demands.
On that day and night, Autokomanda became a place of silence, noise, banners, whistles, speeches, and the meeting of generations. Tens of thousands of people circulated all the time in solidarity with the students and their demands.
During the blockade, which lasted from January 27 at 10 a.m. until the same time the next day, the columns of citizens changed over the course of 24 hours. Autokomanda was then included in another symbol of the student rebellion on Savindan, along Kolarčeva Street from 1997.
Photo: FoNet/Zoran MrđaAutocommand block
Numerous protests were then held throughout Serbia, students expanded their demands, but the authorities did not listen to them. The requests were merged into one primary - calling for extraordinary parliamentary elections.
Students announce a new protest in Belgrade for January 27 from 18 pm in front of the Rectorate building.
The details of the meeting are not yet known.
