Faced with widely supported protests and blockades in the country, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić offered the opposition what he called an advisory referendum on his presidency, adding that he would resign if the vote went against him.

Vučić’s move comes after CRTA, an independent Serbian NGO working to develop democratic culture and civic activism, published research showing that 60% of citizens supported the protests and blockades that followed the collapse of the Novi Sad railway station canopy, which killed 15 people last November.

Students, opposition supporters and the general public have repeatedly taken to the streets following the accident, which they blame on rampant government corruption and nepotism that led to shoddy construction. The government has denied the allegations.

According to the survey, 57% of the population believe that Serbia is heading in the wrong direction, and 58% approve of the student protests. On the other hand, only 28% trust the prosecutor’s office and 27% the president.

In ironic remarks, Vučić said that there was no more credible source, either for the international community or for political parties in Serbia, than CRTA. He added that if what the NGO said was true, he could not remain president of Serbia.

Under Vučić, Serbia is targeting organisations such as CRTA as ‘foreign agents’ and preparing legislation similar to that in Georgia or Hungary aimed at discrediting civil society.

According to the CRTA, student protests have never been so widespread, not even during the era of Slobodan Milošević. The student protests grew after the violent actions of the ruling party’s provocateurs, which caused massive outrage.

The NGO points out that the ongoing massive student protests across Serbia are the most articulated political demands regarding Serbia’s frozen EU agenda.

President Vučić himself seems puzzled by such an attitude, writes CRTA.

With his endless press conferences, the president once again presented himself as a superior authority, demonstrating that certain issues should only be dealt with by the government, the legislature or the judiciary, and certainly not by students and civil society, the NGO stresses.

At the same time, the students demands for the release of all documents concerning the reconstruction of the Novi Sad railway station, the release of all citizens arrested and detained during the protests, the initiation of criminal proceedings against the attackers on the students and their professors, and the increase of the state budget for education instead of corrupt projects have only been partially met, according to CRTA.

The NGO also says that pro-government media are constantly inciting hatred against the students and dramatising the violence against them. There are reportedly suspicions that the security services are trying to gather information on ‘rebels’ among the students in order to retaliate.

(Georgi Gotev | Euractiv)

Source: Euractiv.com