In front of the court building in Novi Sad, a gathering is underway to support a student whose jaw was dislocated when, at the end of January, members of the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) attacked a group of students with baseball bats.
The rally was organized at the invitation of the students in blockade, ahead of the continuation of the trial of four accused individuals on Wednesday, May 28. The attacked student came to court as a victim.
Four SNS members are suspected of attacking students with baseball bats on the night between January 27 and 28, targeting students putting up propaganda material near the SNS offices in Novi Sad.
The trial began in late April. They face charges of “hooliganism” and “serious bodily injury.”
Their attack was the reason for the resignations of then Prime Minister of Serbia, Miloš Vučević, and Novi Sad Mayor, Milan Đurić.
Prime Minister Miloš Vučević announced his resignation on January 28, 2025, amid protests.
Four months later, on May 20, Vučević, as SNS president, announced that party members would block the court building until the accused SNS members were released from custody.
This idea was initially supported by Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, who posted on Instagram on May 20 the message “Freedom to heroes” along with the names of the detained SNS activists.
Later, they abandoned these plans, explaining they did not want to “further complicate the court’s work.”
Before these plans, the Novi Sad Court of Appeal ordered the release of three activists suspected of attempting to overthrow the constitutional order, putting them under house arrest.
This decision came during the blockade of the court building by students and citizens demanding the release of activists, whom they consider political prisoners.
For the remaining three activists, the Court of Appeal sent the detention decision back for reconsideration by the first instance court, which again ordered 30 days of detention.
Now, a decision from the Court of Appeal is awaited regarding the appeal against that detention ruling.
Meanwhile, the students and citizens continue the protest and blockade of the court, which has lasted since May 15.
Protests and blockades have been ongoing in Serbia since November, after 16 people died in the collapse of a concrete canopy at the Novi Sad Railway Station.
Protesters, led by the students in blockade, demand accountability for the deaths of the 16 people at the railway station and call for the announcement of early parliamentary elections.
