Tens of thousands of people on Friday, for the third time in two weeks, blocked important roads in the center of Belgrade during the "Serbia against violence" protest, prompted by unprecedented mass murders in the country at the beginning of May. Pročitaj više

Citizens were invited to the protest by the pro-European opposition, and their list of demands includes the resignation of high-ranking police officials whom they hold responsible for the consequences of inciting and tolerating violence in public, and denying the national frequency to private pro-government television stations that tolerate or promote violence and hatred in their programs.

In just two days, on May 3 and 4, Serbia was rocked by mass shootings in a Belgrade school and in two villages near Mladenovac, in which 18 people were killed and 20 wounded, mostly students and young people.

After gathering in front of the parliament, tens of thousands of people reached the Gazela bridge in a peaceful procession with the lights on their mobile phones and blocked the highway in the direction of Zagreb and Niš.

Demonstration police were not present during the protest, and traffic patrols blocked side streets to ensure the passage of the procession.

The protest was mostly peaceful, with a few sporadic incidents and shoving, which the pro-government media characterised as “conflicts”, “fights” and “violence”.

At the head of the procession, the banner “Serbia against violence” was unfurled, and at the back, a Serbian flag several meters long.

The participants of the protest, having crossed the Gazela, split into two groups – one that headed towards the city center blocking traffic over the Branko Bridge and the other that remained on the highway, where they unfurled large banners from the overpass.

On them were written “Young people do not want reality Serbia! Young people want changes” and “Serbia against violence”.

The most persistent participants in the protest, including activists from pro-European opposition parties, remained on the highway near the Belgrade Arena even after midnight, calling on citizens to stay “until the demands are met.”

Several tents were set up on the highway, and the police diverted vehicles to the surrounding roads.

Traffic in the center of Belgrade and the part of the highway to Nis was normalised after 11 p.m.

Simultaneously with the beginning of the protest in Belgrade, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic gave a speech to supporters gathered in nearby Pancevo, accusing the opposition of abusing two tragedies in the country and the sadness of the people.

Vucic said that “sister services from the east tell him that these are attempts at color revolutions”, alluding to the change of government in Kyiv in 2014 in Maidan Square.

I only know that they are “disgusting attempts” to use the tragic death of children, said Vucic and pointed out that in Serbia one cannot come to power through violence on the streets, but through elections.