Mass protests across Serbia: Tens of thousands of people in the streets, one girl injured in car collision

(Patria) - Tens of thousands of people responded today to a general strike in Serbia, called by students after two months of blocking faculties due to the tragedy at the Novi Sad railway station.

Numerous entrepreneurs, associations, cultural workers, and some media outlets joined the strike.

Demonstrators emphasize that corruption, nepotism, and poor construction work are behind the catastrophe and demand an accelerated court procedure against those responsible.

Teachers' unions also supported the students' call for a strike, resulting in most schools in Belgrade remaining closed, and thousands of students and other demonstrators gathered in front of the Government building.

Dear employees of the public service of the citizens of Serbia @RTS_Vesti here you have a few photos and clips that you can show tonight in RTS's Dnevnik 2, on them you can see the magnificence of the general strike, the whole of Serbia must see this.
You have exactly 4 more hours to do it yourself! pic.twitter.com/Gr1YiiyAKu

— Consigliere® (@santickaopesnik) January 24, 2025

The ruling Serbian Progressive Party is organizing a rally of the "movement for the people" this afternoon. Pro-government media are trying to create the illusion that everything in the country is functioning completely normally, with headlines such as "General strike failed, everything is working," "Serbia did not stop," "General strike was not successful."

One girl was seriously injured when a car drove into a protest procession in Belgrade, Serbian media reported.

A car driven by a woman drove into the procession and carried the girl on the hood for several meters before she fell onto the asphalt. Police and an ambulance intervened, taking her to the hospital.

Actors from Belgrade theaters canceled all evening performances, and numerous shops in the center of Belgrade displayed messages "Closed," "We are not working due to annual leave."

Many bookstores and libraries closed their doors, lawyers suspended work for three days, while trade unionists went to the blood transfusion institute to donate blood – this was the morning scene in the Serbian capital after students, in their two-month protest, called for a general strike.

From 11:52 AM, the action "Stop Serbia" continued at several locations in Serbia, with a symbolic 15-minute silence to honor those killed in the Novi Sad tragedy that occurred on November 1.

A number of lawyers from all over Serbia gathered in front of the Presidency building to tell the students that they are not alone.

I'm crying how proud I am of my fellow citizens. Students, thank you for making us better people ❤️ Kragujevac❤️ pic.twitter.com/Q4uN74XcKe

— Suzana Đorđević  (@suzadj) January 24, 2025

They had a banner with the message "We are not a mob, and you are a scoundrel," in response to the insult directed at them by Aleksandar Vučić, who called members of the Bar Association of Serbia a mob because they announced that lawyers would go on a seven-day work stoppage.

"It seems to me that the people are increasingly waking up and that this day shows that more and more of them are coming out into the streets, that they are no longer so afraid for their jobs, nor because of the threats coming from the authorities," said demonstrator Nikola Golubović.

"The strike is in support of our students to change the situation in the country," stated demonstrator Ljiljana Mihajlović.

Citizens of Vojvodina, especially Novi Sad, joined today's general strike and student protests, who for months have been demanding accountability from the authorities for the deaths of 15 people at the Novi Sad railway station.

Several protests that began in front of educational institutions and other public spaces merged around 1 PM into a large procession that passed through the center of Novi Sad, media report.

Numerous private entrepreneurs, employees in schools and faculties, libraries, veterinary clinics, theaters, musicians, and a part of the media joined the work stoppage.

On Mordor television @tvpinkonline the usual narrative - they are not protecting their chairs, villas, corrupt deals, but Serbia...
And Serbia, like pearls with youth, has spread across the streets all over Serbia!

Info - video taken from a Viber group pic.twitter.com/0faY10E0y2

— Tamara Tripic (@TamaraTripic) January 24, 2025

The Vojvodina.info portal estimates that tens of thousands of people are in the streets, the largest gathering in Novi Sad to date.

Several opposition MPs and city councilors who blocked the highway were detained and taken to court, announced the deputy leader of the opposition Freedom and Justice Party, Marinika Tepić, on social media.

State enterprises and institutions are mostly working, and in some, employees complain that they are locked in to prevent them from leaving their workplaces. Protests were also held in Subotica and Sombor, with several thousand people participating.