Protesters block main state Serbian TV building as tensions soar ahead of a planned large rally
Protesters block main state Serbian TV building as tensions soar ahead of a planned large rally
BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Several hundred student protesters have blocked Serbia’s public television station building in Belgrade as tensions soar in the Balkan country, days ahead of a large rally planned for the weekend and billed as an endgame in months of anti-government demonstrations.
The students first blocked the TV building in central Belgrade, Serbia’s capital, late on Monday and several hundred gathered again on Tuesday, after announcing that their blockade will last for at least 22 hours. A similar blockade was organized in the country’s second-largest city of Novi Sad.
University students in Serbia are behind almost daily rallies that started after a concrete canopy crashed down in November at a railway station in Novi Sad, killing 15 people. The protests have rocked the populist rule of President Aleksandar Vucic and his firm grip on power.
During the blockade late Monday, riot police briefly intervened with batons as the crowd tried to block one of the entrances to the TV building with metal security fences. At least one plainclothes police officer was injured in skirmishes after apparently being struck in the head by a uniformed officer, according to a video released on social media.
The students blame public TV for biased reporting and for siding with Vucic and the government during the demonstrations. The Serbian president was the guest of the main TV news bulletin on Monday evening.
During the interview, Vucic insulted the student-led protests, warning that security forces will use force against participants of the big rally planned for Saturday. He pledged never to step down because of the massive nationwide demonstrations.
“You will have to kill me if you want to replace me,” he said,
The TV reporter who interviewed Vucic called the protesting students “a mob,” which the president appeared to approve of. The station, RTS, issued a statement, denouncing the blockade.
“Forcibly preventing RTS employees from coming to their workplaces represents a dangerous step into open conflicts with unpredictable consequences,” it said.
Some of the TV station’s employees apparently managed to enter the building through a side entrance that’s not publicly known, allowing the program to continue uninterrupted.
Meanwhile, Vucic met with U.S. President Donald Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., who arrived in Belgrade on Tuesday. The purpose of his visit was not immediately known. Pro-Russian Vucic is a vocal supporter of the U.S. president.
Many in Serbia believe that the huge concrete construction fell down because of poor renovation work fueled by government corruption. The students have insisted on full accountability in the tragedy, a call that has garnered widespread support among citizens who are largely disillusioned with politicians and have lost trust in state institutions.
Student-led rallies have drawn tens of thousands of people, becoming among the biggest ever in Serbia, which has a long history of anti-government protests. Vucic has described the rallies as a Western-orchestrated ploy to oust him from power.
The next big rally is planned on Saturday in Belgrade and Vucic has alleged the protesters “will try to achieve something with violence and that will be the end.” Many demonstrators “will end up behind bars accused of criminal acts,” he added.
All student-led protests in the past months have mostly been peaceful, while incidents were recorded when opponents drove their cars into protest blockades or attacked the protesters.
Vucic and his right-wing Serbian Progressive Party have held a firm grip on power in Serbia for over a decade, facing accusations of stifling democratic freedoms despite formally seeking European Union entry for Serbia.
Authorities have indicted 16 people over the canopy collapse, but many doubt that the actual culprits will face justice.
By DUSAN STOJANOVIC
Associated Press
