Serbian Students Rally Against Corruption and Injustice

Belgrade (Eurotoday) – Thousands of people joined student demonstrations in Serbia to protest against alleged injustice and corruption, with many chanting “We deserve better.”

Protesters from across the country gathered in Nis, about 200 kilometers from Belgrade, for a festival-style protest on Saturday expected to last 18 hours. Students described the event, during which a symbolic regulation would be passed, as “a wakeup call to move from apathy to action, from silence to a noisy struggle for a better future … our pledge never to give up!”

“We want the (state) institutions to work in the interest of all of us and not to our detriment,”

the students stated in a declaration.

“We want a system that values knowledge and work, not obedience and silence.”

Citizens in Nis gave a warm and loud welcome to the students as they marched into the city after walking for several days in groups from different directions. These student blank”>protests have become a significant force in Serbia’s rural regions, which have traditionally supported the government. 

How has the train station collapse fueled public anger?

Students from universities in the Balkan nation, which has been ruled by a populist government for over a decade, have been staging nationwide protests since the deadly train station canopy collapse in November. The incident, which killed 15 people, has been widely attributed to government corruption.

The near-daily protests often draw tens of thousands of participants and have challenged President Aleksandar Vucic’s strong grip on power. Vucic has dismissed the protests as a Western-backed attempt to remove him from office.

The train station had been renovated twice in recent years as part of a broader infrastructure project involving Chinese state firms. Many in Serbia believe that the work was substandard and neglected safety regulations due to widespread corruption.