Protests in Serbia

The Society for Threatened Peoples (STP) welcomes the European Commission’s decision to maintain pressure on Serbia regarding the EU accession negotiations, warning about a possible escalation of the situation in the country. People have been protesting against the government of Aleksandar Vučić for weeks – triggered by the collapse of the concrete roof of the recently renovated train station in Serbia’s second largest city, Novi Sad, on November 1, in which 15 people were killed and two were seriously injured.

“The Serbian people have had enough. Demonstrations demanding an objective investigation into the collapse are now taking place all over the country – led by students and young people who are demanding changes,” stated Jasna Causevic, expert on genocide prevention and the Responsibility to Protect. “The Serbian government and the authorities are reacting to the protests with repression and arrests. As the demonstrations spread, there is an increasing risk that the authorities will use even more force against the protesters,” the human rights activist warned.

To draw attention to the dramatic situation in Serbia, the Coalition for Media Freedom has sent an appeal to European journalists, asking them to report on “the struggle of the Serbian people against the autocratic regime of Aleksandar Vučić.”

“We are supporting the appeal of the Serbian journalists. They are the most important defenders of democratic values – committed to transparency, accountability, truth and justice in a region that is plagued by genocide, ethnic cleansing, and persecution of minorities, where ethno-nationalist politicians continue to promote inter-ethnic conflict,” Causevic added.

“Aleksandar Vučić – who was involved in the atrocities of the Balkan wars of the 1990s and who is still denying that his country played an active role in the genocide of Srebrenica – represents a political culture of criminality, concealment, and corruption in Serbia, where speaking the truth carries the risk of intimidation, including assassination and death threats. Thus, journalists in Serbia need our solidarity.”