Removal of barricades begins in Serbia, protesters demand release of detainees

2025-06-30 09:01:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

In Serbia, barricades have begun to be removed and traffic normalized, after thousands of anti-government protesters blocked roads in several Serbian cities in the early hours of June 30 and demanded the release of protesters who were detained by police, as the protests increase pressure on populist President Aleksandar Vu?i?.

Protesters, led by students, placed metal barricades and trash cans on the streets of Belgrade and blocked the Gazela Bridge, which is located over the Sava River.

News agencies reported that protesters in Novi Sad – where this wave of anti-government protests began eight months ago – surrounded the offices of Vu?i?'s Progressive Party of Serbia (SNS), pelting the building with eggs.

A website was created by student organizers announcing that barricades had been erected at 30 points in the Serbian capital, adding that similar actions were being carried out in at least 22 other Serbian cities.

The protests intensified after police officers began detaining participants in a mass rally held in Belgrade on June 28.

Vu?i? stated that law enforcement agencies are expected to make "many more arrests."

Anti-government crowds returned to the streets on the evening of June 29, demanding the release of dozens of people detained on the first night of the protest.

"They should release the detainees. It's ugly how the government treats young people. We want to live in a free state, as the students demand," Gordana Atalanc told Radio Free Europe.

"We are calling on the institutions to start doing their job. To arrest those who are truly responsible for the violence. Last night they beat people, they arrested anyone who came across them," Milan Antonijevic told Radio Free Europe.

A REL journalist reported that hundreds of people were blocking the main traffic junction in Autokomanda, in an action organized by residents of the Vozdovac municipality.

Sanja, a student at the Faculty of Law in Belgrade, told Radio Free Europe that she came out to protest again to "continue the fight for a state governed by law."

Prosecutors have stated that the detainees will be held for up to 48 hours, on suspicion of acts of violence and attacks on police in Belgrade during the massive protest organized by students, in which an estimated 140,000 people participated.

Interior Minister Ivica Dacic said on June 29 that police had detained 77 people, and at least 38 of them were still in custody.

In the past eight months, thousands of Serbs, often led by student groups, increasingly joined by other citizens, have protested against Vu?i? and his government.

The protests were sparked after 16 people died when a concrete shelter collapsed at the Novi Sad Railway Station on November 1, 2024.

Protesters said the tragedy was caused by corruption and incompetence by the authorities, and the protests quickly dispersed, reflecting broader anger at Vucic, whose five-year term is due to end in 2027.

Vu?i? has been president of Serbia since 2017 and previously served as prime minister for three years.

Parliamentary elections in Serbia are expected to be held at the end of next year.

Vu?i? and his government have denied the corruption allegations and have stated that they are investigating the tragedy in Novi Sad, where dozens of officials have been arrested as part of the investigation into the event.

Over the weekend, smaller groups of government supporters also protested in Belgrade.

Vucic, who is trying to balance ties with traditional ally Russia and the West - aiming for his country to become a member of the European Union - has accused "foreign powers" - without specifying who he is referring to - of instigating the recent protests.

"The state will be defended and the bandits will face justice," he told reporters after the first night of protests./ Rel