One year since the tragedy that has sparked outrage among young people in Serbia

Belgrade“[Today] it’s a source of pride to be Serbian,” says Zena as she marches toward the Novi Sad train station, north of Belgrade. With her, hundreds of thousands of people are walking in the same direction. They have set out from sixteen different points, one for each victim of the station canopy collapse. This Saturday marks one year since the collapse that killed these sixteen people. Deaths that the Serbian population, but especially students, attribute to corruption.

Every night since November 1, 2024, Serbian Generation Z has taken to the streets demanding accountability. Initially, the demands focused on punishing those responsible for the corrupt scheme that awarded the contract for the renovation of this town’s train station to a Chinese company.

But as the months have passed, these demands have intensified, and now there are five: publish all documents concerning the renovation and demolition of the Novi Sad train station, prosecute the responsible officials, release and drop charges against the students arrested during the university and press protests, and call elections.

Since the protests began, violence against demonstrators has been constant. A total of 230 participants have been arrested in recent months. The European Parliament itself issued a resolution last October on Polarization and repression of protests in SerbiaFurthermore, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, called on Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic to guarantee respect for fundamental rights, freedom of expression, and the right to peaceful assembly.

"Yes, they will listen to us. The government will give us what we ask for," Lana enthusiastically affirms, walking alongside Zena. These two residents of Novi Sad are certain that this marks "a turning point for Serbia."

According to local estimates, some 10,000 people gathered. But the flow of people continued to arrive in Serbia's second-largest city throughout the week. By bicycle, on foot, by tractor, by motorbike... The method of arrival was irrelevant; what mattered was arriving in time to pay tribute to the victims of Novi Sad.

"People see this gathering as a very important event because of the tragedy a year ago, which was rooted in corruption. We are very tired of being deceived by the government," Vladimir says at the gates of the Novi Sad train station, where a memorial altar has been set up. Hundreds of people came to lay flowers, and few could hold back their tears, especially students who ended the march embracing each other. "You see people passing by, and when the students arrive, you see them crying. It touches your soul. It's very moving," says the young man, who has completed his engineering studies.

At precisely 11:52 a.m., the 16 minutes of silence for the sixteen victims began. Their names have been read aloud and displayed on the large screens set up along Oslobodenja Boulevard, where stickers against the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), in power since 2012, are piling up. "If they listened, they would do something to change the situation, but after a year no one has taken office. There have been no elections, because this government won't do anything, since its main goal is to stay in power," says Vladimir, convinced.

These student protests are already the largest in the country's history since the ninetiesHowever, the government continues to ignore the demands and incite oppression against the students. "We are becoming a political movement, and the students have their own [electoral] list, and we hope that everything will end with elections. People can't tolerate so much corruption, so much repression, so basically, we hope that the elections will be soon and that we can articulate our demands politically. Since this government doesn't listen to its people, we must."