The protests against Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic are continuing: Thousands of people have taken to the streets in Belgrade for the fifth consecutive Saturday, Reuters reported. Some protesters chanted slogans such as „Vucic Thief“ or held placards reading „Stop Betrayal, Defend Constitution and Support People“.
Vucic party is said to have hired thugs
The cause of the protest series were several incidents in which, inter alia, the leader of the opposition alliance „Alliance for Serbia“ had been beaten. The Alliance suspects that the Vucic’s „Serbian Progressive Party“ (SNS) had hired the thugs. The SNS denies this reproach. Also, the handling of journalists and the pressure on the media by the government bring people according to their claims on the street.
The demonstrations are the first major protests since spring 2017, when thousands of mostly young Serbs took to the streets following Vucic’s election victory. Critics accuse him of authoritarian rule and muzzling the opposition, the media and civil society.
