On November 1st at exactly 11.52 a concrete canopy on Novi Sad railway station collapsed instantly murdering 14 persons, while 3 were seriously injured. The number of victims rose to 15 when a young woman died in the hospital due to her injuries. Two injured victims still remain under severe hospital supervision, almost three months after the collapse. This sunny, peaceful day was one of the darkest in recent Serbian history, especially for Novi Sad. This multicultural town is known for its peace and quiet, its people being extremely polite and kind. However, in the past three months, even this has changed.
Although government officials assured the public that all necessary measures will be taken and the responsible persons will be punished, the angry and hurt citizens did not believe the government whose corruption and lack of transparency have been an issue for several years. The citizens started spontaneously gathering on the streets at 11.52 almost every day, paying respect to the dead. At first, for 14 minutes of silence, and then 15, a minute for each life that was lost due to a corrupted reconstruction project of the railway station.
At one of these 15-minute gatherings, students of the Faculty of dramatic arts in Belgrade blocked the street in front of their Faculty in order to pay respects to the Novi Sad victims. They were physically attacked, by what at first seemed, passers-by. However, soon after the incident, the public identified the attackers – local government officials from Belgrade. The students were determined to seek justice for their hospitalized peers and set together in order to discuss the next steps. Their collective decision was the blockade of the faculty, the institution they see as their own, in order for other institutions to listen to them and start working according to the law, in their own capacities and competencies.
Soon after, in acts of solidarity and support, other faculties and universities across the country started their own blockades. From that moment on, each decision, including the decision about the blockade, was voted by the plenum (an assembly of all the members of a group or committee) organised by the students themselves. Now, four months after the tragic event in Novi Sad, more than 80 faculties (including Faculty of Theology in Belgrade and some private faculties) are in a blockade. The wave of violence spread towards the younger students, those who dared to raise voices in their highschools. But so did the wave of blockades and protests and the number of involved citizens increased. High school students started blocking the streets every day at exactly 11.52, university professors, high school teachers and principals stood behind their students and supported their requests. Soon the unions of miners, IT professionals, media and culture workers gave their support to the joint cause – requests for the institutions to prosecute the law breakers and protect the students during the peaceful protest.
Besides the direct democracy that the students practice everyday on their plenum meetings, they have shown incredible knowledge and capability to organise, communicate with the public, to stand in solidarity with other peers, but most importantly, they showed that knowledge and determination they have is beyond any textbook lesson. They have gone through the cracked and weakened educational system, acquiring the core knowledge for critical thinking, direct democratic participation and hands-on solidarity. They sacrificed their lectures, exams and grades in order to demonstrate that a common goal is above the personal results and successes. In a country without media freedom, they managed to communicate their message so clearly and efficiently, that it reached even the most distant of towns and villages in Serbia.
How did they succeed? On foot. This is not a metaphor—literally, on foot.
It all started with a large gathering on February 1st in Novi Sad, marking 3 months from the tragedy. In order to pay their respects to the victims, students blocked 3 bridges together with the citizens. But what was even more moving and influential, was a two-day long march from Belgrade to Novi Sad when students walked through towns and villages carrying their message that justice must be met. Local people gathered, cooked meals for students and supplied them with anything they needed – from food and water to bandages and medical supplies. With tears in their eyes people of all ages greeted students like they were liberators.
The next large gathering was on February 15th in Kragujevac, as this is where the first Serbian constitution was signed on this day in 1835, a date Serbia still celebrates as its Statehood Day. Students set off on foot from different towns toward Kragujevac in groups, passing through smaller places to inform people about what was happening and break through the media blackout. Some groups walked as much as 150 kilometers in just three days.
In Kragujevac, they announced another gathering in Niš 15 days later, where an even larger number of people attended, and once again, students and young people marched on foot. The latest research shows that around 80% of the population now supports the students’ demands.
From the very beginning of the blockades to these massive protests, marches, and demonstrations, the movement has consistently upheld the same four demands. The first demand is for full disclosure of all documentation related to the reconstruction of the railway station canopy in Novi Sad. The second is for all those who committed violence against students during the blockades to be arrested and prosecuted. The third is for the release of all activists who were detained for supporting the blockades. And the fourth demand is for a 20% increase in the state budget allocation for higher education.
The next major gathering is scheduled for March 15th in Belgrade. According to student groups, this will be the final gathering, marking the end of all protests. On the other hand, these same student groups continue to unequivocally and persistently inform the public that they will not give up on the blockades until all four demands are met. In other words, students are confident that on March 15th in Belgrade, they will secure the fulfillment of their demands. How? Follow our portal on March 15th to find out.
PUMP IT UP!
