Bosnian Students Unite for Justice, Inspired by Serbia’s Anti-Corruption Movement
SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina (AP) — On Monday, students in Bosnia organized a demonstration demanding accountability for the lethal floods that occurred last year. This protest was motivated by the substantial anti-corruption movements by students in neighboring Serbia that have effectively frozen the country.
Following the tragic collapse of a railway station canopy that resulted in 15 fatalities on November 1, students in Serbia have engaged in strikes and blockades, gaining widespread support across the troubled Balkan region, which has been scarred by conflicts during the 1990s when the former Yugoslavia disintegrated.
Similar protests have emerged in Montenegro, and gatherings in Croatia and Slovenia have also shown solidarity with the Serbian students.
“The effectiveness of the protests in Serbia can be attributed to their scale. People are joining the students, demonstrating persistence,” stated Sarajevo student Sumeja Durakovic.
The unity among students reflects common frustrations in the Balkan countries that suffer from corruption and claims of ineffectiveness and mismanagement. Serbia, Bosnia, and Montenegro are all striving for European Union membership; however, reforms in these nations have been slow to progress.
The protests in Serbia were sparked by the collapse of the concrete structure in Novi Sad, which critics attribute to governmental corruption. This incident ignited widespread anger and calls for reform, challenging the authority of populist President Aleksandar Vucic, who has maintained a firm grip on power for over a decade.
In Bosnia, the protests in the capital, Sarajevo, sought answers regarding the deaths of 29 individuals during catastrophic floods last October when a majority of the victims were trapped in a village buried under debris from an allegedly illegally constructed quarry above.
Students brandishing banners that read “Crime without punishment,” and chanting “We won’t stop!” demanded criminal accountability for those whose negligence contributed to a disaster they believe was preventable.
“The rain and rocks did not kill them; it was the negligence of authorities and institutions that failed to act preventively and responsibly concerning our lives, our homes, and nature,” the students declared in a statement.
Meanwhile, in Montenegro, students are protesting to demand the removal of senior security officials following two separate shootings in under three years that left 23 people dead, including children.
A mass shooting on New Year’s Day resulted in 13 fatalities before the attacker took his own life. The incident prompted Montenegrins to question why no preventive measures were implemented after a first fatal shooting in 2022 that claimed 10 lives, including two children. The assailant was ultimately killed by a bystander.
One of the organizers of the protests in Montenegro, Milo Perovic, emphasized the importance of aligning with the “waves of boldness” emerging from Serbia.
Montenegro’s protests involve daily silent blockades lasting 23 minutes to honor the shooting victims, similar to how Serbian students commemorate the 15 victims of the canopy collapse each day.
In Sarajevo, Lamija Fuka expressed her belief that “we, the students, can unite and transform society and our corrupt system … putting an end to all of this.”
She added that “the time has come for young people to awaken and respond to what (political leaders) have subjected us to for the past 30 years.”
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Associated Press writers Jovana Gec in Serbia and Predrag Milic in Montenegro contributed to this report.