After months of protests, on Saturday the biggest protest in Serbian history since 2000 took place: a gathering of over 300.000 people. Sadly, Vučić’s government deliberately organised obstructions and provocations on an unprecedented scale. The government set up a camp of ruling party supporters to provoke the peaceful demonstrators. The police arrested activists and used a sound cannon, cynically at the moment of the 15-minute silence for the victims of the collapse of the roof of the Novi Sad railway station.
European Green Party co-chair Vula Tsetsi reacted: “Students in Serbia are leading an incredible protest movement. Despite countless provocations from the Vučić regime, the protesters remained peaceful. As Greens we fully support the peaceful protests and their demand for an end to corruption and authoritarianism in Serbia. We are still waiting to see any public reaction from the European People’s Party (EPP) to which Vučić’s party, the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) is an associate member. Serbia is a neighbour of the European Union and rightfully a candidate for integration. Yet the influential politicians of the European People’s Party (EPP) stay mute.”
European Green Party co-chair Ciarán Cuffe said: “Vučić has disturbingly told demonstrators 'you would need to kill me if you want to replace me’. When a president makes ominous threats like this, the EPP should remind him of the basics of democracy and non-violence before things get out of hand. The EPP shouldn’t allow Vučić to become its next Orbán. EPP officials should put pressure on the Serbian regime to back down, to look into the students’ demands, and take steps to form an interim government that will ensure and organise free and fair elections, restoring confidence in democratic institutions.”
