Latest news with #MilosVucevic
Al Jazeera
29-06-2025
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Serbia's president vows more arrests after huge antigovernment protests
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has said many more antigovernment protesters will be arrested, as clashes with police at a massive night-time rally demanding early parliamentary elections marked a crescendo of months-long public dissent. At a news conference on Sunday, the populist leader accused the organisers of Saturday's student-led protest in the capital, Belgrade, of inciting violence and attacks on police. 'There will be many more arrested for attacking police … this is not the end,' Vucic said, accusing the protesters of causing 'terror'. Clashes erupted after the official part of the rally ended. Police used pepper spray, batons and shields while protesters threw rocks, bottles and other objects. Critics say Vucic has become increasingly authoritarian since coming to power more than a decade ago, having served as first deputy prime minister from 2012 to 2014 and prime minister from 2014 to 2017 before becoming president, stultifying democratic freedoms while allowing corruption and organised crime to flourish. He denies the accusations. Saturday's rally was one of the largest in eight sustained months of demonstrations triggered by the roof collapse at a train station in the city of Novi Sad in November, killing 16 people – a tragedy widely blamed on entrenched corruption. Following the outcry over the disaster, Prime Minister Milos Vucevic resigned, but the governing party continued in power, with a reshuffled government and Vucic still in office. Authorities put the crowd size at 36,000 – well below an independent estimate by the Archive of Public Gatherings of about 140,000. During his news conference, Vucic also criticised 'terrorists and those who tried to bring down the state', singling out University of Belgrade's head dean, Vladan Djokic, who was among the protesters. 'Take freedom into your own hands' 'Serbia won. You cannot destroy Serbia with violence,' said Vucic. 'They consciously wanted to spur bloodshed. The time of accountability is coming.' Protesters say the current populist government is 'illegitimate' and lay the responsibility for any violence on the government. Police said on Sunday that 48 officers were injured while 22 protesters sought medical help. Out of 77 people arrested, 38 remain in custody, most of whom are facing criminal charges, said Interior Minister Ivica Dacic. Before Saturday's protest, organisers had issued an 'ultimatum' for Vucic to call elections – a demand he has repeatedly rejected. After the rally, organisers played a statement to the crowd calling for Serbians to 'take freedom into your own hands' and giving them the 'green light'. 'The authorities had all the mechanisms and all the time to meet the demands and prevent an escalation,' the organisers said in a statement on Instagram. On Sunday, Vucic reiterated there would not be any national vote before the end of 2026. He has repeatedly alleged the protests are part of a foreign plot to destroy his 12-year government, without providing any evidence. More than a dozen people have been arrested in recent weeks, a crackdown that has now become routine in the face of large demonstrations. Serbia is formally seeking European Union membership, but Vucic's government has nurtured close relations with Russia and China.
Qatar Tribune
28-06-2025
- Politics
- Qatar Tribune
Protesters in Serbia demand snap elections
BelgradecTypeface:> Tens of thousands of anticorruption protesters have taken to the streets of Serbia's capital, Belgrade, demanding an early election in a bid to end the 12-year rule of President Aleksandar Vucic. Large numbers of officers in riot gear were deployed to police Saturday's protests, which were organised by Serbia's university students. The students were a driving force behind nationwide demonstrations that started nearly eight months ago after the deadly collapse of a renovated concrete rail station roof in the northern city of Novi Sad killed 16 people. The tragedy last November became a flashpoint for frustrations with the government, with many Serbians saying that it had been caused by alleged corruption and negligence in state infrastructure projects. Prime Minister Milos Vucevic resigned at the start of this year, but Vucic remains in power.
Al Arabiya
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
Serbia's protesting students demand a snap election
Serbia's protesting university students are demanding a snap election after months of anti-corruption demonstrations that have shaken President Aleksandar Vucic's tight grip on power in the Balkan country. A statement posted to a joint social media account late Monday said that an early vote is the only way out of a deep political crisis in Serbia triggered by a train station disaster that killed 16 people on Nov. 1, which was widely blamed on government corruption. The station building in the northern city of Novi Sad had been renovated twice before its concrete canopy crashed on the people below. Critics said fueled negligence and disrespect for safety rules caused the huge construction to collapse. The disaster sparked months of protests demanding justice and the rule of law , which have garnered huge support among Serbia's citizens drawing hundreds of thousands of people. 'Government corruption is so deeply rooted in state institutions that they are unable perform their duties independently,' the protesting students said. 'We believe that democracy is the only right way to solve a political crisis of such proportions.' A snap election would entail dissolving of dominated parliament and scheduling the early vote. The ruling Serbian Progressive Party leader and former Prime Minister Milos Vucevic has rejected the idea, saying it would spell a 'disaster' for the country. Vucic, a right-wing populist whom critics accuse of stifling democratic freedoms, has alleged the student protesters staging a 'color revolution' under orders from the West. Vucic is formally saying he wants Serbia to join European Union while boosting ties with Russia and China. Serbia's protesting students post statements and protest announcements on the joint social media account Students in Blockade. They have no leaders or spokespersons and make decisions at faculty plenary sessions.
Bloomberg
19-03-2025
- Politics
- Bloomberg
Serbia Confirms Premier's Resignation Amid Months of Protests
Serbian lawmakers approved the resignation of Prime Minister Milos Vucevic, starting a countdown for either a new government to be formed or a snap election held amid massive anti-graft rallies. Hundreds of thousands gathered in capital Belgrade last Saturday in what has emerged as the biggest challenge to President Aleksandar Vucic in the more than a decade he's dominated politics as prime minister or president. The Balkan nation has been rocked by demonstrations since November, when a roof collapse at a railway station killed 15 people.
Reuters
14-03-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
Warning of unrest as Serbian protesters descend on Belgrade
Summary Protesting students arrive to Belgrade for major rally this weekend Serbia's PM Milos Vucevic warns state will react in case of incidents Opposition, students accuse Vucic's backers of preparing for violence BELGRADE, March 14 (Reuters) - Thousands of protesters, mainly students, descended on Belgrade on Friday ahead of a planned weekend of massive anti-government rallies, many travelling hundreds of miles on foot or by bike. In a sign of the potential for unrest, President Alexandar Vucic's outgoing prime minister, who has already submitted his resignation over the protests, made a veiled threat to use force to suppress rallies expected to be among the biggest for years. Live broadcasts showed people cheering and waving Serbian flags as hundreds of students entered Baric, a community inside the Belgrade city limits. Similar student columns were seen entering other Belgrade suburbs to meet in the city centre. The rallies are expected to be the biggest since near daily protests began following the deaths of 15 people when a roof at a railway station collapsed on Nov 1 in the northern city of Novi Sad, a disaster opponents blame on corruption under Vucic. Students, teachers, farmers, and workers have joined the demonstrations in a major challenge to Vucic, a populist, in power for 12 years as prime minister or president. Throngs of Vucic loyalists have arrived in Belgrade this week to camp near his office in the centre of the city. They brought tractors overnight to surround their camp. In a televised address, outgoing Prime Minister Milos Vucevic said police would intervene in case of violence: "The state has ... the apparatus of force, please do not provoke it," he said. Vucic's office said the president would address the nation at 6:00 p.m. (1700 GMT). Patriarch Porfirije, the head of the dominant Serbian Orthodox Church, called for "everyone, without exception, to reject violence". Last December, students issued a set of demands that included the release of documents related to the railway station disaster and accountability for those responsible. Prosecutors have charged 13 people over the disaster, and the government has announced an anti-corruption campaign.
