November 1, 2024. The fall of the canopy at the Railway Station in Novi Sad. The death of 15 people. Shock, sadness and anger among citizens of Serbia. Protests begin. The whole country pauses every day at 11:52 a.m. to silently pay respect to those who died at that exact time.
November 22nd. Blockade of the boulevard near the Faculty of Dramatic Arts. FDU students were physically attacked.
November 25th. FDU students begin a blockade of their faculty, demanding criminal charges against the attackers. And so, at the beginning of December, a chain reaction begins. One after the other, almost all faculties of all universities in the country woke up. Belgrade, Novi Sad, Niš, Kragujevac. Student blockades begin.
By mid-December, almost 60 faculties were on lockdown. A large number of high schools also joined, and students and pupils were supported by teachers and professors, as well as numerous public figures. Suspension of classes, organization of plenums and protests continued. And very massive. The students still insist on the fulfillment of their demands, which include, among other things, the publication of complete documentation on the reconstruction of the Railway Station, the filing of criminal charges against their attackers, and the dismissal of charges against those arrested and detained at the protests. The authorities continue to claim that they have fulfilled all the requirements.
During that time, classes do not continue at the faculties, but life continues.
We tried to record what life looks like at the blockaded faculties on the spot – we were visiting students in Belgrade and we bring you the story about it in the new episode of the series “Strength of Struggle”. Journalist Marko Novičić spoke with the students.
Watch the story in the video attachment.