Parents of children killed in May 3 mass shooting protest in Belgrade

(Patria) - In Belgrade today, parents of children killed in the May 3 mass shooting at the "Vladislav Ribnikar" Elementary School held a protest.

They gathered because nothing has yet been done regarding the initiative by some parents to turn the school into a Memorial Center.

Parents of the children and other citizens gathered in front of the school at 8:40 AM, the time the shooting began on May 3.

They then went to the Government of Serbia building, where they posted notes with the inscription "May 3 is still ongoing".

Ninela Radičević, mother of a murdered girl, stated that the building where ten people were killed can no longer be a school, as it is a crime scene.

- I don't understand the need to sweep everything under the rug and pretend that May 3 never happened, and to continue as if nothing happened. It seems to me that this is the direction we are heading, and that is what hurts us the most - Radičević said.

She stated that experts dealing with this issue should say what the Memorial Center should look like.

She added that it would be acceptable if experts said that the Memorial Center should be located elsewhere, but that decision should be made by a team of experts.

- The state needs to start addressing this problem once and for all and make a clear statement. Does the state think there should not be a Memorial Center here? Let them say so, but a reaction is necessary - added the mother of the murdered girl.

Branko Anđelković, father of a murdered girl, emphasized that after the mass murder on May 3, the "Vladislav Ribnikar" school should have been completely closed, and a Memorial Center should have been established in its place.

- A Memorial Center is not built in five minutes; it takes years. It is not needed by me, but it is needed by you, children, grandchildren, society - Anđelković stated.

Ivanka Popović, a professor at the Faculty of Technology and Metallurgy in Belgrade, also joined the protest, saying that a Memorial Center is necessary so that society does not forget the horrific events.

- It is a terrible warning that we, as a society, have allowed violence to become the primary mode of communication. Preserving the memory of the victims is one way we can fight to prevent this from happening in the future - Popović told RSE.

On May 3, a 13-year-old attacker shot at his peers and school staff with his father's pistol. He killed eight students and a security guard, and wounded six students and a teacher.

Twelve days later, a girl died from her injuries, the tenth victim of the armed attack.

The mass murder at the Belgrade elementary school on May 3, and the one that followed less than 48 hours later in the villages of Dubona and Orašje near Belgrade, in which eight people were killed and 14 wounded, triggered a wave of protests in cities across Serbia.