What marked the protests on Sunday, June 1, in 34 cities of Serbia?
Students and rebellious citizens spent June 1 in the streets in protests. The main demand of the students was repeated - to register early parliamentary elections, but also the options of what will happen if the government does not do it.
Accidents
The protests passed peacefully, except for the incident on the Gazelle, when one driver, during 16 minutes of silence, insisted on driving his car over the bridge, on the section near the Sava Center, which was full of citizens who were standing peacefully. A biker stopped in front of the driver who got off his motorcycle to pay respects to the victims in Novi Sad and blocked part of the road. The driver ran his car over the biker's leg, after which he got out of the car and started insulting him. The orderlies and the police quickly separated them, so the conflict did not escalate.
Bikers and veterans in Zrenjanin had problems with the traffic police, who listed their plates, while in Kraljevo the owner of the nearby luna park did not want to turn off the music during the 16 minutes of silence, allegedly for fear of "dispersing the visitors".
Disobedient
During the protest under the slogan "Arise Serbia", the academics announced that they are not giving up their struggle and demands for the calling of extraordinary parliamentary elections. They said that if the elections are not called within a reasonable time, they will start civil disobedience in every city and will not allow the normal functioning of the system, which, as they stated, ignores the will of the citizens.
"We will be in front of the institutions, in front of the ministries, in front of the televisions that silence us, we will start civil disobedience in every city. We will not disturb the citizens, we will disturb lies, injustice and corruption," the students said.
They stated that they advocate for the restoration of democratic responsibility through the only legitimate channel available - the will of the people, and said that democracy must not remain a mere promise. They stated that they had exhausted every legitimate type of search for justice on the street, and that they turned exclusively to institutions that are legally responsible for student demands.
Getting out of big cities
The protest was held in Belgrade, Novi Sad, Niš, Kragujevac, Novi Pazar, but numerous smaller cities were also on the list. Thus, the protest continued in Aleksinac, Bela Palanca, Bor, Čačak, Jagodina, Kikinda, Kosovska Mitrovica, Kraljevo, Kruševac, Leskovac, Loznica, Pančevo, Pirot, Priboj, Prokuplje, Ruma, Senta, Sombor, Sremska Mitrovica, Subotica, Surdulica, Šabac, Užice, Valjevo, Vlasotinac, Vršac and Zrenjanin.
In front of the National Theater in Niš, the stand "Talk to a student" was set up, and the idea of spreading the protest to a large number of other cities came from the students' initial thesis that their voice should be heard in every place and that only in this way will their demands reach all the people in the country. This blockade was part of the "Arise Serbia" action under the slogan "Decentralization is loading".
Although rebellious students and citizens have been asking for early elections for months, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, for the first time in 13 years, does not want to call them. At the same time, the formal president of SNS, Miloš Vučević, says that the party is "always ready" for elections
Belgraders blocked the Gazelle in both directions, there was an attempt to break through the blockade in Užice, cyclists from Šabac came to Jadar to protest against Rio Tinto, there were rallies in Užice, Kragujevac, Niš...
In Belgrade, Niš, Kragujevac and Novi Sad, in that order, student and citizen protests are starting today. There is a protest against Rio Tinto in Jadar, and cyclists from Šabac joined them, citizens of Užice for the removal of the mayor
The agreement on the constitution of the Assembly of Kosovo was missed for the 49th time in a row, which means that there are still seven days to choose the institutions, according to the deadline set by the Constitutional Court
Rector Đokić's meeting with the British envoy for the Western Balkans, Karen Pearce, is proof of the "anti-Serbian revolution" for Informer. But when President Vučić met with the same person on the same day, words about peace, cooperation and stability followed
Metropolitan Justin of Žica openly sided with the students and warned the government that "power was not given for the sake of violence, but for the sake of service". What was the need for an archbishop known for avoiding conflict
Just as Šešelj pulled a gun on the students at the beginning of the nineties, so Vučić pulls his beaters on their rebellious daughters and sons today. It's the same policy, just adapted to the times
The President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, acquits thugs and madmen who beat and trample students, while arresting those same students. A people in rebellion is no longer guaranteed a bare life - but the guild will pay for this regime in the end
Exclusive: Research by Slobodan G. Marković and Miloš Bešić on the attitudes of Belgrade students in the plenum
What we didn't know about them subscribeThe archive of the weekly Vreme includes all our digital editions, since the very beginning of our work. All issues can be downloaded in PDF format, by purchasing the digital edition, or you can read all available texts from the selected issue.
See all
