Berliner Tageblatt - Tens of thousands rally in Serbian capital demanding elections

Since the station canopy collapse in November 2024 in Novi Sad, which killed 16 people, calls for a transparent investigation into what happened have snowballed into a push for early polls.

Yelling the movement's signature slogan, "The students are winning," to the din of drums and whistles, crowds streamed through the city to Slavija Square in the centre. Large banners hanging from trees, T-shirts, badges and stickers also bore the slogan.

The organisers had called for a rally between 6:00 pm (1600 GMT) and 8:00 pm.

"The goal of today's protest is for all of us to gather again and to make it clear to people that we are still here, that we are fighting and working, that we have not and will not stop," 24-year-old architecture student Andjela told AFP.

Some marchers carried Serbian flags or ones representing their university faculty, while others who had travelled from around the country held banners with the names of their towns.

Students in high-vis tops served as stewards while war veterans and bikers were also present to protect the crowd.

Police chief Dragan Vasiljevic told a news conference the force estimated the turnout at 34,000. No independent estimate was available.

"Today, a clear message is being sent," said another marcher, pensioner Zoran Savic.

"Change must come, Serbia must become a democratic state, the rule of law must be present for everyone, meaning the rule of law equally for everyone," he said.

"And Serbia must be part of the democratic, European community."

- Election demand -

The protests have not stopped since the Novi Sad disaster, with one demonstration in March 2025 bringing as many as 300,000 together.

The students leading the movement hope Saturday's demonstration will relaunch their campaign to push nationalist President Aleksandar Vucic to call early elections. Vucic, who regularly raises the issue, suggested on Thursday that they could take place in autumn.

While the protests have passed off peacefully for the most part, some have been marred by clashes in recent months, with several protesters saying they were attacked by masked government supporters.

"So far, we have had no significant or serious incidents," police chief Vasiljevic said early on Saturday evening.

"We hope that the remainder of this public gathering will proceed peacefully and safely, and that the dispersal at the end of the gathering will pass just as peacefully as the arrival."

On Friday, the Council of Europe's human rights commissioner warned that Serbia's rights situation had worsened, citing attacks on activists and journalists, shrinking civic space and alleged police abuses at protests.

"After a year and a half of protests, people have not given up and have not lost their strength," said Ivan Milosavljevic, a demonstrator who came from eastern Serbia.

"The strength of the protests can be seen in the number of people here today. We will continue until this anti-people regime is removed."

W.Lapointe--BTB