Thousands protest in Serbia as anger mounts over train station accident

Protesters demand the resignation of Serbia’s leader and mayor of Novi Sad city over the deadly accident that killed 15 people.

Tens of thousands of Serbians have gathered in the capital Belgrade to protest against President Aleksandar Vucic and his ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), which they blame for a railway station roof collapse last month that killed 15 people.

The rally, one of the largest in recent years, was called on Sunday by university students and farmer unions and took place in Belgrade’s Slavija Square.

It began with 15 minutes of silence as a tribute to as many people killed after the concrete canopy of the recently renovated roof of Novi Sad station caved in on November 1.

Fourteen people, aged between six and 74, were killed that day and a 15th victim died in hospital weeks later.

Prosecutors have arrested 13 people over the incident, including a government minister whose release later led to public scepticism about the honesty of the investigation.

Opposition leaders and the public have taken to the streets repeatedly, blaming the accident on shoddy construction resulting from government corruption and nepotism. The ruling coalition denies those charges, and Vucic has said those responsible must be held to account.

The protesters on Sunday evening switched on the lights of their mobile phones and shouted “Vucic, thief!” Others held up banners reading “We are all under the canopy” and “You have blood on your hands”.

“We came here to say ‘Stop’ to everything that has been happening since 2012 [when Vucic’s party took power],” said Aleksa, 30, an IT expert from Novi Sad. “We want to see an end to corruption and nepotism.”

Many are demanding that Serbia’s leader as well as the mayor of Novi Sad resign, and that those found responsible be prosecuted. They are also calling for legal proceedings to be dropped against demonstrators, and for the prosecution of those who attacked the protesters.

Serbia’s popular theatre and movie actors joined the protest, with actor Bane Trifunovic describing Sunday’s rally as “a festival of freedom”.

Smaller rallies were also held in the cities of Nis and Kragujevac.

In a bid to calm the protests, authorities over the past weeks have promised various subsidies for young people. Students – and other citizens supporting them – have continued to protest, saying their demands have only been partially met.

Despite the ongoing demonstrations, Vucic on Sunday inaugurated a section of a newly built highway in central Serbia.

Vucic said he would not budge to opposition demands for a transitional government and accused his opponents of using students to try to seize power.

“We will beat them again,” he said. “They [the opposition] don’t know what to do but to use someone’s children.”

The weeks-long protests have occurred amidst general discontent with Vucic’s rule. He had said he wants to take Serbia into the European Union but has faced accusations of curbing democratic freedoms rather than advancing them.