Just days after students at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine voted to end their blockade, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić has shown once again that he prefers threats and intimidation over dialogue. In an outrageous display of authoritarian arrogance, Vučić declared that professors who supported the students’ protests “won’t get paid even by accident.”
Speaking on Informer television, Vučić openly threatened educators, saying:
“No one will force them, and they made a mistake, they made a big mistake. You won’t study? Don’t study. You won’t go to school? The professors won’t get paid even by accident… Those at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine won’t get paid even by accident because they don’t work. There is no big philosophy, they can invent whatever they want and as much as they want, demonstrate all the time, I have no problem with that.”
These words are not just reckless—they are a direct attack on academic freedom, a blatant abuse of power, and a warning to anyone in Serbia who dares to challenge his regime. Vučić is using the state as a weapon, punishing professors and students alike for exercising their democratic rights.
The blockade, which began 7 November, was a peaceful protest by students demanding better conditions and support. Even after faculty did not back the blockade, Vučić chose to respond not with understanding or dialogue, but with threats that could leave hardworking educators without salaries.
Calls to Dean Milorad Mirilović went unanswered, highlighting how Vučić’s intimidation silences not only students but also faculty, forcing them into submission.
Instead of addressing legitimate concerns, Vučić’s tactics reveal a pattern of coercion, fear, and control. By targeting professors for simply supporting their students, he undermines the very foundation of Serbia’s education system and shows the world that in Vučić’s Serbia, dissent is punished and voices of reason are silenced.
This is not leadership—it is bullying at the highest level, a dangerous precedent that threatens the rights and livelihoods of those who refuse to bow to authoritarian whims.
