What are Serbia's protesters demanding, and what's next?

Al Jazeera

2 days ago

Thousands of people took to the streets in Serbia over the weekend, marking the latest round of protests over widespread corruption and stifling democratic freedoms.
After nearly eight months of persistent dissent against populist President Aleksandar Vucic, demonstrators declared the government 'illegitimate' and clashed with riot police in the capital, Belgrade.
Police said on Sunday that 48 officers were injured while 22 protesters sought medical help. Interior Minister Ivica Dacic said out of 77 people detained, 38 remained in custody on Sunday, most of them facing criminal charges.
Vucic accused the organisers of inciting violence and attacking police officers, calling them 'terrorists' who 'tried to bring down the state'.
Critics accuse him of being increasingly authoritarian since coming to power, first as prime minister in 2014 and then as president since 2017. Serbians have a history of uprooting strongman leaders; they ousted Slobodan Milosevic 25 years ago after bloody protests.
What are protesters demanding?
Antigovernment protests started in November, after a renovated rail station canopy in the northern city of Novi Sad collapsed, killing 16 people. Many in Serbia blamed the tragedy on corruption-fuelled negligence in state infrastructure projects.
Following the disaster, Vucic and his Serbian Progressive Party stayed in power with a reshuffled administration.
The student-led protests have since focused their demands on the need for snap elections instead of regular elections planned for 2027. In advance of Saturday's protest, organisers had issued an 'ultimatum' for Vucic to announce a new vote by 9pm (19:00 GMT) that day – a demand he rejected.
Protesters are also stressing the need to ensure that elections are free and fair through several reforms, including a review of voter records, equal access to media for all participants in political life and measures to prevent vote-buying.
Other requests also include reforming the education system, recognising student bodies – known as plenums – as legal entities, ensuring fair wages for all education sector workers, and respecting the autonomy of universities.
While Serbia is formally seeking European Union entry and Vucic maintains a pro-European stance, critics have also denounced his government's deepening ties with Russia and China.
What's new in the latest round of protests?
Saturday's rally was one of the largest since the Novi Sad disaster. Authorities put the crowd size at 36,000, well below an independent estimate by the Archive of Public Gatherings, which suggested that about 140,000 people had gathered.
Unlike previous demonstrations that passed peacefully, this time police and protesters engaged in violent clashes. Riot police used tear gas and batons as protesters hurled flares and bottles at rows of officers in Belgrade.
Vucic has repeatedly alleged the protests are part of a foreign plot to destroy his government, without providing any evidence. He has not specified whom he was alluding to in referring to an external nation looking to destabilise Serbia. Vucic said there would be 'no negotiations' with 'terrorists'.
'They consciously wanted to spur bloodshed. The time of accountability is coming,' he said.
Engjellushe Morina, senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), said the government had been conducting a 'smear campaign' aimed at criminalising protesters.
'The narrative by government-supported media is that they are 'terrorists' and have to be dealt with,' Morina told Al Jazeera.
'It is unclear how far the government will be willing to go,' the analyst said, adding, the situation 'is escalating and both government and protesters are determined not to back down this time'.
Have Serbian protesters forced a government change before?
Yes. They ousted Milosevic — who had led the country since 1989 — 25 years ago in what became known as the Bulldozer Revolution.
A popular uprising began on September 24, 2000, following a presidential election that saw significant irregularities — but in which Milosevic claimed victory.
The protests culminated on October 5 with a bulldozer charging into the building of the Radio Television of Serbia, considered the bastion of the government's propaganda machine.
Milosevic resigned two days later. In 2001, he was arrested on charges of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes and handed over, by the government in Belgrade, to an international tribunal in The Hague. His trial there began in 2002, but Milosevic's deteriorating health slowed its progress. Milosevic was found dead in his cell in 2006 while the trial was still on.
The October 2000 revolution is etched into the memory of the nation as it is once again roiled by protests. However, Morina, the ECFR fellow, said despite the government's attempts to portray the protests as foreign-led, the student movement has less support from abroad than demonstrators had in 2000, while Vucic enjoys a stronger grip on the country's security infrastructure than Milosevic did.
Therefore, the ECFR analyst said protesters had little expectation of making gains in the short term. 'They are very well aware this might have to go on for a long time,' she said.
What's next for the protest movement?
The student-led protest movement has pledged not to back down. 'This is not a moment for withdrawal,' it said on Instagram.
After Saturday's rally, organisers played a statement to the crowd, calling for Serbians to 'take freedom into your own hands'. 'The authorities had all the mechanisms and all the time to meet the demands and prevent an escalation,' the statement said.
On his part, Vucic said there would be more arrests. Later on Sunday, eight people were arrested on accusations including planning to block roads and attack state institutions. More arrests are likely to follow.
'There will be many more arrested for attacking police … this is not the end,' the president said, adding that 'identification of all individuals is under way'.
According to Morina, arrests could force the movement to a temporary lull to regroup, but are unlikely to put out the nationwide protests.
'They're serious, I don't think they will go away easily,' the analyst said, adding that she forecasts protesters will 'eventually prevail'.
'But at what cost, we don't yet know,' she said.