Thousands of citizens gathered tonight in Novi Sad for a large-scale protest rally organized by the youth movement “Students in Blockade“, Danas reported.
The strong coordinated discontent against corruption and the insistence on early elections blocked major roads in the second largest Serbian city, supported by farmers with tractors.
The demonstration began in the late afternoon with two rays from the University Campus and Limanski Park, which merged into a common procession of thousands. The protesters completely closed the key “turbo“ roundabout between “Tsar Lazar“ Boulevard and Fruškogorska Street.
According to official figures from the Serbian Ministry of Interior, around 7,800 people were present at the scene, while organizers say the number is significantly higher. The youth held up banners with slogans like "Students win" and said that Novi Sad remains the epicenter of the civil unrest that began after the 2024 train station tragedy that killed 16 people.
The students' demands were joined by representatives of the Farmers' Survival Initiative in Serbia. They brought in agricultural machinery to help maintain the blockades and set up food and water distribution points for the protesters. The safety and logistics of the march were assisted by cycling associations and the local motorcycle group “White Rabbits“.
From the podium, speakers condemned corruption at the highest levels of power, censorship in the media and police pressure on activists. The main political demand sent to Belgrade is the dissolution of the National Assembly and the calling of early parliamentary elections under fair conditions.
In order to avoid provocations and clashes with law enforcement, which have marked previous demonstrations in the capital Belgrade, the organizers deliberately disbanded the rally shortly after 7:00 p.m. local time, before dark. Police confirmed that the event ended without serious incidents.
Almost at the same time, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić made a live television address. He ignored the protesters' demands and announced that his ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) would hold its own large-scale counter-rally under the slogan "Serbia does not stop" on June 27.