Hundreds of Serbian opposition activists, mostly students, announced they would block the streets of Belgrade for 24 hours on Friday to protest what they said was “fraud” in the Dec. 17 parliamentary election won by the nationalist right.
Several hundred protesters gathered at the call of the organization “Borba” in front of the Faculty of Philosophy of the University of Belgrade to demand a revision of the voter lists. “We are announcing a 24-hour blockade on Friday,” activist Ivan Bielich said at the rally.
According to the main opposition coalition Serbia Against Violence, Serb voters from neighboring Bosnia were illegally allowed to vote in Belgrade on December 17. International observers, including those from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, also reported “irregularities” during the vote, including vote buying.
Protests in Belgrade are growing, students are preparing new blockades
According to Ivan Bielich, the street blockade should start on Friday at noon. It will be lifted the next day for protesters to join another demonstration organized by a group of intellectuals, creatives and celebrities.
According to official results, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic’s Serbian Progressive Party won 46% of the vote against 23.5% for the opposition coalition.
Following the election, there were numerous protests and demonstrations that blocked thoroughfares in the capital, with calls for the election to be annulled and new elections to be held. On Sunday night, demonstrators tried to enter the Belgrade City Hall building, breaking windows, before being pushed back by police.
A Belgrade court announced that four arrested demonstrators will remain in custody for another 30 days on charges of “violent behavior during a public meeting”. Another six people are under house arrest on the same charges, and one person has been released, the court announced.
The seven arrested demonstrators who pleaded guilty received suspended sentences of up to six months in prison and fines of 20,000 Serbian dinars each.
Will the anti-government discontent in Belgrade escalate?
2023-12-27 20:58:06
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