Serbian anti-corruption protests
| 2024–present Serbian anti-corruption protests | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Southeast Europe protests (2024–present) and Gen Z protests | |||
| Date | 3 November 2024 – present (1 year, 4 months, 1 week and 4 days) | ||
| Location | |||
| Caused by | |||
| Goals | Initial demands:
Formalized student demands:
Government response:
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| Methods | |||
| Status | Ongoing | ||
| Concessions |
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| Parties | |||
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| Lead figures | |||
Non-centralized students' union leadership
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| Number | |||
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| Casualties and losses | |||
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In November 2024, mass protests erupted in Novi Sad, Serbia, after the collapse of the city's railway station canopy, which killed 16 people and left another severely injured. By March 2025, the protests had spread to 400 cities and towns across the country. Led by university students, the protests called for accountability for the disaster.
The protests began with student-led blockades of educational institutions, initiated on 22 November at the Faculty of Dramatic Arts in Belgrade, after students were attacked during a silent tribute to the victims. Other faculties and high schools soon joined. In the early stages, protesters enacted daily "Serbia, stand still" (Serbian Cyrillic: Застани, Србијо, romanized: Zastani, Srbijo) traffic blockades from 11:52 am to 12:08 pm—the exact time of the collapse—as a symbolic gesture honoring the deceased, accompanied by a silent protest.
By early 2025, these 16-minute pauses had ceased as a standalone action, and the movement transitioned into sustained civil disobedience. Protesters began organizing extended road blockades, walking demonstrations, a protest cycling and relay race from Belgrade to Strasbourg and Brussels, respectively, and blockades of the headquarters of Radio Television of Serbia that severely disrupted its programming.
Confrontations escalated as supporters of the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) and the police clashed with demonstrators, leading to street fights and arrests in multiple cities, including smaller ones such as Novi Pazar and Užice. After months of student lockouts at most higher learning institutions, including the University of Belgrade and the University of Novi Sad, classes resumed and the 2025/2026 school year commenced in the previously locked-out institutions. Continuing anti-academic rhetoric by the regime presented a false narrative of the lockouts.