BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Skirmishes erupted for a second day on Friday during a court protest in Serbia as political tensions persist in the Balkan country more than six months after the start of massive anti-corruption demonstrations.
Riot police in the northern city of Novi Sad used pepper spray and pushed away protesters demanding the release of a group of activists jailed for a third month for alleged anti-state activities.
The six activists were detained in March after secret recordings of their alleged plotting of anti-state actions were broadcast on pro-government media in Serbia ahead of a major rally in the capital, Belgrade.
Police also used pepper spray in Novi Sad on Thursday, while tensions mounted in the central town of Kraljevo during a session of the local municipal assembly, as well as the southern city of Nis, where Vucic plans a weekend rally. Students there have announced they would organize a counter-gathering on Saturday.
Hundreds of thousands of people attended the huge March 15 rally in the Serbian capital that was part of a nationwide movement which started after a concrete canopy collapsed on Nov. 1 at a train station in Novi Sad killing 16 people.
Many in Serbia believe widespread government corruption linked to major infrastructure projects fueled negligence and undermined construction regulations that contributed to the disaster.
Shaken by the protests, the government of populist President Aleksandar Vucic has stepped up pressure on those involved while trying to curb the demonstrations.
Lawyers for the jailed activists in Novi Sad say that accusations against their clients are based on illegal wiretapping and lack evidence of the alleged coup plot. Six more activists have fled the country to avoid arrest over the same incident.
Local media reports said a jailed professor was transferred to a hospital in Belgrade after going on a hunger strike.
Tonino Picula, the European Parliament's envoy for Serbia, urged the immediate release of Prof. Marija Vasic and other “poltical prisoners.” Picula added that “there is no reason for them to be kept in inhumane conditions.”
“Citizens of Serbia want to live in a country free of state intimidation,” Picula said on X. “EU leaders must react!”
Civil Rights Defenders group also condemned the activists' jailing, calling it “a clear attempt by the Serbian government to silence dissent.”
Critics have accused Vucic of an increasingly authoritarian rule that stifles the media and other democratic freedoms. The populist president says he wants Serbia to join the European Union while boosting relations with Russia and China.
Earlier this month, Vucic attended Russian President Vladimir Putin's Victory Day military parade in Moscow, which has sparked EU criticism.
A sticker reads "You have blood on your hands" is attached to a traffic sign as Serbia's protesting university students stand in silence to commemorate the 15 victims killed after a railway concrete canopy fell in November and demanding an immediate snap election after leading months of anti-corruption demonstrations, in Belgrade, Serbia, Tuesday, May 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
