“People determined to fight the mafia regime to the end”: Thousands protest in front of the Palace of Justice

A large group of citizens gathered in front of the Higher Public Prosecutor’s Office in Belgrade to protest against the arrest of students scheduled for 8pm, and Savska Street was blocked before the protest started. The crowd chanted “resign”, “arrest Vučić”, “release them all”. Traffic was also blocked near Autokomanda and, as Danas has learnt unofficially, tents will be erected there.

FoNet reports that motorcyclists and traffic police are ensuring the safety of the rally participants, and first aid teams are on the ground.

Police officers in riot gear are stationed outside the court.

The Beta journalist reports that the number of people gathered continues to grow and that some estimates suggest that it is already more than 10,000 people.

We will not allow Serbia to become Belarus. Aleksandar Vucic has launched a war against his own people, giving them the following ultimatum on Vidovdan: Either I am in power at any cost, without the support of the citizens, or there will be no Serbia”, said Srđan Milivojević, President of the Democratic Party (DS).

“The will and desire of one man to rule without any control and restrictions cannot be stronger than the desire of millions of Serbian citizens to live in freedom. Serbia’s Assad would probably want to escape, but he will have to serve his time”, Milivojevic added.

“I call on all politicians to unreservedly support the demands of the students for elections and the rebellious citizens of Serbia without any conditions. Vucic must go“, said the DS President.

”I demand that all those arrested be released immediately because the crimes they are allegedly accused of were fabricated in the mind of a man torn from reality. Release all innocent people so that there is room in the prisons for those who have brought Serbia to this situation, led by the biggest coward in Serbia’s history”, Milivojevic concluded.

Aleksandar Ivanović, Deputy President of the Serbian People’s Movement, also addressed the gathering: ‘Today we are witnessing the impotence of the Aleksandar Vučić regime, which promised in March to crush the citizens’ revolt, but which 150,000 people denied yesterday, on Vidovdan’s Day in Belgrade. It is now clear to him that when we speak of the end, we can only speak of the end of the insidious and harmful regime of the Serbian Progressive Party.”

“In response to the endless columns of rebellious citizens on the streets of Belgrade, Vucic has issued orders for the arrest of students – smart children and the future of this country” Ivanović added.

“This citizens’ protest in front of the VJT only confirms that people are determined to go to the end in the fight against the mafia regime and that they will not agree to live in the conditions of fear and terror that Vucic is trying to impose,” Ivanovic said.

“We demand the release of all students who have been wrongly arrested. The issue of solidarity is more important today than ever, we must all stand shoulder to shoulder in this struggle for the liberation of Serbia”, concluded the NPS Vice President.

The students who were blocked during the day called for a protest in front of the VJP, the reason for the arrests being the arrests after yesterday’s Vidovdan protest.

As a student from Niš explained, both citizens and students from all universities in Serbia who were at a meeting to organise the Vidovdan protest are being arrested.

She stated that her colleague Dimitrije Dimic, who is organising today’s protest in Niš, has also been detained.

According to the students, all detainees are suspected of terrorism. Students from the Faculty of Philosophy in Belgrade have also called for a protest tonight.

They chanted “Everybody on the streets, they are arresting our students” as they walked down Knez Mihailova Street.

Currently, a number of junctions and locations in Zemun are blocked – Aleksandar Dubček and 22 October, Nemanjina and Nikolaj Ostrovski, Glavna and Stevan Marković, Jovan Subotić and Stevan Marković, Kej Oslobođenja, Okretnica 88, N1 reported.

In Zemun, a number of intersections and locations are currently blocked – Aleksandar Dubček and 22 October, Nemanjina and Nikolaj Ostrovski, Glavna and Stevan Marković, Jovan Subotić and Stevan Marković, Kej Oslobođenja, Okretnica 88, N1 reports.

The reason for the blockade is the detention of two students from the Faculty of Agriculture.

A student of this faculty, who was present at the arrest of her colleagues today, said that “it was not a detention, but a kidnapping”.

“They had no warrant to detain them, they were taken in an unknown direction,” she told N1, indicating that the students would launch civil disobedience to put pressure on the institutions./Danas/