Is civil disobedience a violation of the law, what rights do the police have and how can citizens avoid or prepare for arrest
After several months student protests, which many citizens supported, appeared at the end of June a new form of rebellion throughout Serbia.
There is a street blockade in place, as one of the aspects civil disobedience.
Citizens block the streets, the police disperse them and so on in a circle, according to the method - who will last longer.
It is civil disobedience - an act that represents a violation of the law, but aims precisely to change the law and the government.
What is civil disobedience?
Civil disobedience is defined as a public, non-violent, political act against the law, carried out precisely to introduce changes in the laws and regulations of the government.
Civil disobedience leads to the exhaustion of all legal means to eliminate injustice.
The main characteristic of civil disobedience is that it is a non-violent act, which must not lead to conscious injury or major material damage.
Lawyer Marko Pantić explains to "Vreme" that civil disobedience does not exist legally.
"It is a justified way of fighting, but everyone who participates in it should be aware of the consequences. Anyone who engages in it should be aware that they are committing an illegal act for which they can be held accountable," adds Pantić.
But that's exactly what civil disobedience is aiming for - recordings arrests, taking away peaceful citizens is usually solidarity.
On the other hand, the fact that one can answer does not mean that the beating of peaceful citizens, running at them with police batons and invented accusations of subverting the state, all of which happened in the previous days, are justified.
By subjecting itself to punishment, civil disobedience hopes to set a moral example that will provoke a majority or government to implement significant political, social or economic change, defines the Encyclopedia Britannica.
Civil disobedience has different forms, and among them are demonstrations without a permit, undeclared marches, walks and rallies, road blockades...
Forms of civil disobedience can also include blockades of cultural institutions and faculties in the previous months.
What are the rights of the police in case of civil disobedience?
On Sunday and Monday, the police responded several times to disperse the blockades.
According to the Law on Police, the powers of the police are very broad, and the police have the right to break up this type of blockade, explains Pantić.
"Of course, the reactions of the police are bounded by the public interest and the principle that a more difficult means of coercion should not be taken if it can be easier. First of all, the police should use a verbal warning. If the crowd does not react to that, the next step is the physical use of force. If you oppose their use of physical force, you are committing a criminal offense - obstructing an official in the performance of his duty, and then you are in a bigger problem," adds Pantić.
As he explains, the police should not undertake more severe means of coercion if the situation can be resolved more easily.
"He doesn't need to break the blockade with cars or hummers, if he can call people and tell them to remove the blockade," explains Pantić.
The students in the blockade recommended exactly that to the citizens - as soon as they see the police, they should take cover and come back later.
What if I don't want to identify myself?
If you find yourself on the street and the police identify you, you have an obligation to show them the document, otherwise, the police can take you to the station in order to establish your identity, explains the interlocutor of "Vremena".
As he adds, there is no penalty for non-legitimization, but the police can always add a criminal offense - if you refuse to cooperate, you are standing on the road instead of the sidewalk.
"Citizens should be aware that they can fall under the repression of the state apparatus, but they should not be desperate because they are aware of what they are doing. They should have a lawyer's number in their phone, or even better, know it by heart, and instruct their relatives to contact a lawyer if they are detained," concludes Pantić.
Civil disobedience in the recent history of Serbia
This form of rebellion is not new to the citizens of Serbia.
The fall of Slobodan Milošević's regime in 2000 was precisely caused by civil disobedience, symbolized by the Resistance movement, which played a major role in mobilizing the public and the fall of the regime.
Student protests in 1996 and 1997, due to the theft of local elections, are also civil disobedience faced by the regime of Slobodan Milošević.
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