A monster demonstration was held in Belgrade overnight from Friday to Saturday, against violence, following the two massacres committed 15 days ago. Tens of thousands of people calling on the opposition are demanding the resignation of several ministers and the closure of pro-government media with very often violent content.
Tens of thousands of demonstrators, a column of four kilometers: unheard of since the fall of Milosevic, 23 years ago. The opposition to the regime of President Aleksandar Vucic called, for the third time in two weeks, for a protest against the violence. Their demands: the resignation of several senior officials and the closure of media with violent content, reports our correspondent in Belgrade, Laurent Rouy.
On May 3, a 13-year-old boy was accused of murdering eight students and a guard at the school he attended in central Belgrade. Less than 48 hours later, the Balkan country was shaken by a new shooting, when a 21-year-old man shot dead eight people in villages near Belgrade. Killings that sowed fear in the small Balkan country.
“ The spark, it was these massacres and this irresponsibility. For a long time, there has been something rotten in this country. I am 71 years old and my children have gone to work abroad. It makes me sad. I demonstrate so that the children do not leave anymore “says a man.
City center and highway blocked
The demonstrators block the city center, then the highway, a strategy which had made the government give in last year, on an environmental file. But this time, the demands are aimed directly at the autocratic style of power. It’s the only method, according to Boban, 41. ” The more of us there are, the greater our chances. People don’t have access to institutions, so they take to the streets with the hope that, that way, the institutions will be forced to listen to them. “.
Calls for the resignation of the president are heard in the procession. Protesters decide to cut the highway. Tents are set up and several hundred die-hards, including 23-year-old Bogdan, block traffic. ” There was a slogan that made me stay for the night. It was “we stay until the resignation of President Vucic”, Until we get everything we ask for, and then we’ll go home “says the young man.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic calls the protests a coup “ policy and announced a counter-demonstration of his supporters for May 26 which he says will be “ the largest rally in Serbian history “.