On Saturday, January 25th, thousands of Serbian citizens answered the call of students in blockade and took to the streets to protest in various cities.

Protests have been ongoing for nearly three months, calling for political and criminal accountability regarding the deaths of 15 individuals resulting from the canopy collapse at the reconstructed Railway Station in Novi Sad on November 1st.

Cities such as Zrenjanin, Mladenovac, Kikinda, Novi Bečej, Kruševac, Vrnjacka Banja, Paraćin, Prijepolje, Ruma, Vršac, Pančevo, Smederevo, Smederevska Palanka, Ćuprija, Sombor, Sokobanja, Velika Plana, and numerous others have seen protests.

A crowd of several thousand gathered in the center of Zrenjanin. Following their demonstration, they observed a 15-minute memorial for the victims of the Novi Sad accident at the city’s central roundabout.

Protesters brandished signs with messages such as “For justice, not for money,” “Demands have not been met,” and “We will pass this exam too,” as reported by a Radio Free Europe correspondent.

The demonstrators also chanted, “They attacked the students!” referencing recent attacks on students in Belgrade.

In two separate incidents, two female students were injured when a vehicle collided with a group of protesters.

The prosecutors have charged the drivers involved in both incidents with attempted murder.

These protests occurred following a mass “general strike” the previous day, instigated by the students in blockade, with tens of thousands participating in nationwide demonstrations.

The protests, which have persisted in Serbia for almost three months, demand accountability from officials after the canopy collapsed at the Novi Sad Railway Station, leading to the death of one person and serious injuries to two others on November 15.

Among the students’ demands is the accountability for those who attacked protesters, as they have maintained blockades at over 60 state universities for the last two months.

They also seek the halting of legal proceedings against demonstrators.

The foremost demand is the release of all documentation related to the reconstruction of the Novi Sad Railway Station to ascertain the political and criminal liability for the 15 fatalities from the canopy collapse.

Government representatives assert that all demands have been addressed and urge students to resume their studies.

Academics argue, however, that while some demands have been partially met, the suspension of university operations will remain until further notice.

They emphasize that the documentation concerning the Railway Station, which was made public by the Government of Serbia and the Higher Public Prosecutor’s Office in Novi Sad, is inadequate, a point echoed by several professionals.

Over 5,000 university professors in Serbia have backed the students in their blockade efforts.

On December 13th, the Higher Public Prosecutor’s Office in Novi Sad filed charges against 30 individuals in relation to the canopy collapse, including former Minister of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure Goran Vesić, his assistant Anita Dimoski, and former director of the public company “Infrastruktura Željeznice Srbije” Jelena Tanasković.

While ten defendants are currently in custody, Vesić remains free, and both Tanasković and Dimoski are under house arrest.

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