If the Serbian government does not announce early parliamentary elections by the evening of June 28, "citizens will be ready to take all existing measures of civil disobedience."
This is what Serbian student protesters warned, ahead of the rally announced in Belgrade for June 28 - the day when Vidovdan is celebrated, which in history is linked to the Battle of Kosovo in 1389.
The students' second demand is to end the protest in central Belgrade, where opponents of the protesting students, who describe themselves as "students who want to learn," have been setting up camps for three months now.
A group of protesting students has been blocking most state universities in Serbia since late November last year, expressing dissatisfaction with the socio-political situation in the country, following the accident at the Novi Sad Railway Station.
16 people lost their lives when a concrete shelter collapsed there.
Since May, the main demand of the students on the blockade has been the calling of early elections so that the new government can work on fulfilling their previous demands.
They include: publishing full documentation on the reconstruction of the Railway Station in Novi Sad, identifying and prosecuting those who attacked protesters during rallies across Serbia, releasing activists arrested in protests and discontinuing criminal proceedings against them, and increasing the budget for universities.
On the other hand, "students who want to learn" have been setting up camps in front of the Serbian Presidency since early March, asking authorities to allow them to return to universities.
They have been visited several times by the Serbian president himself, Aleksandar Vučić, and have also been supported by Serbs from Kosovo, including members of the Serbian List.
Ultimatum of students in blockade
The students in the blockade published an open letter to the Serbian Government on social media, in which they asked it to send a proposal to the president to dissolve Parliament, with the aim of calling early parliamentary elections.
They said that the mandate the Government received from Parliament "does not reflect the current political situation in the country."
"The regime has shown that it no longer has the capacity to lead the country through the greatest socio-political crisis in recent decades," the students assessed.
They also asked the Government to call on the Ministry of Internal Affairs to ban the “reported public gathering” - at the location of the “students who want to learn” camp - until 9:00 PM on Saturday.
What to expect on June 28?
The protesting students stated in an open letter that the rally will be held in Belgrade on June 28 and that they expect a large number of disgruntled citizens to participate.
They said they cannot predict the citizens' next steps after the official end of the rally.
They added that they are calling "for the last time" for their demands to be met, in order to "prevent the culmination of civic and student dissatisfaction."
The last major protest, organized by these students, was held on March 15, when in the late evening hours, after several minor incidents, it was declared over, so that the situation would not escalate.
The informal organization Archive of Public Gatherings, which estimates the size of gatherings in Serbia, estimated that between 275,000 and 325,000 people participated in the protest in Belgrade on March 15, noting that the number may have been even higher.
On the other hand, "students who want to learn, in early June - after Vučić's call - postponed the hunger strike until June 28, if the state does not resolve the situation regarding the faculty blockades.
Government and opposition on early elections
Most opposition parties supported the students' demand for early elections, while Vučić said that he is guided by the needs of the country and the people and that he will make assessments and decisions accordingly.
The Serbian government, led by Prime Minister Miloš Vučević, fell at the end of January this year, while the new government, led by Gjuro Macut, was elected in mid-April.
During his presentation to Parliament, Macut said that Serbia is tired of divisions and blockades, that work must be done to harmonize society, that harmony can be built through dialogue, tolerance, work and building a system of values, and that his priority will be the normal functioning of schools and faculties.
However, the protesting students believe that the current government, led by the Serbian Progressive Party - founded by Vučić - does not have the capacity to lead the country, that the protests of recent months have "delegitimized the government" and that, for this reason, they are calling for early parliamentary elections.
Due to the level of distrust towards institutions, according to them, "there is no alternative solution to this crisis."/ REL (A2 Televizion)
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