Latest news with #MilosVucevic
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.
Russia Today
07-03-2025
- Politics
- Russia Today
WATCH protesters attack Belgrade city hall
Violent clashes broke out between opposition protesters and law enforcement outside the city hall in the Serbian capital Belgrade on Thursday, as demonstrators attempted to disrupt a session of the city legislature, local media have reported. Footage from the Ruptly video agency showed several dozen protesters blocking traffic outside the building, which is home to the City Assembly of Belgrade, before trying to breach metal barriers set up by police. Officers in riot gear pushed back the crowd as demonstrators threw eggs and bags of red paint at the building and pepper-sprayed police. Reports also claimed that at least one journalist was attacked while trying to enter the building during the scuffle. Eight police officers sustained injuries requiring medical attention, while five protesters were detained, according to reports citing authorities. Serbian Parliament Speaker Ana Brnabic condemned the incident, calling it an 'act of terrorism' by the opposition. She stressed, however, that the assembly successfully passed scheduled motions, including budget revisions for the city's public utility companies and urban planning regulations. Thursday's clashes came two days after opposition MPs disrupted a session inside Serbia's National Assembly, setting off smoke grenades and tear gas to protest against the government. Some lawmakers rushed the speaker's chair, leading to a scuffle with security guards. Two female MPs were injured, with one reportedly suffering a stroke. This week's protests follow months of student-led demonstrations against alleged corruption and government negligence in Serbia. The protests were initially triggered by the deadly collapse of a concrete canopy at the Novi Sad railway station last November, which claimed 15 lives. The situation has led to public outrage throughout the country, and prompted the resignation of several high-ranking officials, including Prime Minister Milos Vucevic. Protesters have since been calling for systemic government reforms, while the opposition has questioned the government's legitimacy in passing legislation following the prime minister's resignation. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic earlier accused foreign actors of fueling the unrest to destabilize the country. Last month, Vucic claimed that opposition forces were collaborating with Western, Croatian, and Albanian intelligence agencies to incite a 'color revolution' in Serbia, but vowed that his government would not back down.
Telegraph
04-03-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
Serbian MPs injured as smoke bombs and tear gas thrown in parliament
Serbian MPs were injured after smoke bombs and tear gas canisters were hurled inside the country's parliament on Tuesday. The chaotic scenes came amid growing fury at the government over a railway station roof collapse that killed 15 people, some of them children, last year. Opposition MPs threw the devices in anger at ministers and in solidarity with demonstrators, many of them students, who have taken to the streets on an almost daily basis in recent months. As the chamber filled with smoke, some opposition MPs lit flares and fought with security guards, while others unfurled a banner that read: 'Serbia will rise to bring down the regime.' They also waved Serbian flags and held signs saying: 'Your hands are bloody' and 'Fulfil the students' demands'. At least three MPs from the governing Serbian Progressive Party were injured, including one who suffered a stroke and was reported to be in a critical condition. The scenes marked an escalation of the discontent that has swept the country and presented a stiff challenge to Aleksandar Vucic, the country's nationalist president. Hundreds of thousands of Serbs have taken part in demonstrations following the station disaster in Novi Sad, the country's second-largest city, in November. Protesters, including students, teachers, judges and farmers, have blamed the tragedy on shoddy construction standards, a lack of oversight and corruption within the government. They have marched in towns and cities across the country, demanding the full release of documents relating to the construction work. The collapse of the railway station canopy has acted as a lightning rod for discontent with the president's increasingly autocratic rule. Outside parliament, demonstrators held 15 minutes of silence – one minute for each of the victims. Meanwhile, the protests inside took place on the opening day of the parliament's spring session. The proceedings had been due to confirm the resignation of Milos Vucevic, Serbia's prime minister, who announced in January that he was stepping down in an effort to calm tensions. However, opposition MPs accused the president of trying to deflect blame for the tragedy by using the resignation as a distraction. The clashes inside parliament further inflamed tensions, with Ana Brnabic, the parliament's speaker, describing opposition politicians as 'terrorists'. Prosecutors have charged 13 people over their alleged involvement in the disaster, including the former minister for construction and transport, but protesters want the investigation to be broadened. Campaigners have called on the public to join another anti-government rally in Belgrade on March 15. Mr Vucic, a former information minister in Slobodan Milosevic's brutal Yugoslav regime, became prime minister in 2014 before taking up the role of president three years later. He has blamed 'foreign agents', including Western intelligence agencies, for stoking the protests. Freedom House, a pro-democracy NGO, characterises Serbia as only 'partly free' despite it being a 'parliamentary democracy with competitive multi-party elections '. The NGO said in recent years the country's ruling party had 'steadily eroded political rights and civil liberties, putting pressure on independent media, the political opposition and civil society organisations.'
