Serbia’s PM Milos Vucevic resigns as protests raise political pressure

In response to widespread protests against corruption and President Aleksandar Vucic, Serbian Prime Minister Milos Vucevic has resigned.

Vucevic stated at a press conference on Tuesday that he had made the decision to step down in order to ease tensions. Since November’s fatal accident of a train station canopy in Novi Sad’s northern city, student-led demonstrations have been occurring.

The prime minister’s announcement came as protesters ended a 24-hour blockade at a major intersection in the capital, Belgrade. Vucic made a hint the previous evening that he was prepared to negotiate and drop his hardline stance against the demonstrations.

“To avoid further complicating things, so we do not further raise tensions in society, I made this decision”, Vucevic said on Tuesday.

Vucevic, who served as mayor of Novi Sad in 2022 when a Chinese company began the station reconstruction, stated that the attack on a female student by assailants allegedly from Vucic’s ruling Serbian Progressive Party was his immediate resignation.

“Whenever it seems there is hope to return to social dialogue, to talk, … it’s like an invisible hand creates a new incident, and tensions mount again”.

He also said the present mayor of Novi Sad, Serbia’s second largest city, will also resign.

After the Serbian Progressive Party received the most votes in tension-torn elections in April, the 50-year-old was elected prime minister.

Expanding protests

After camping overnight, protesters on Tuesday morning packed up and cleared the Autokomanda junction in Belgrade, where several major roads and motorways connect.

Following a call for a general strike on Friday, which saw small businesses and schools close, and lawyers stop their jobs.

Since November, the protests have gotten more organized, with some calling for an end to Vucic’s rule, which has been in place for more than a decade, and early elections.

Student organizers vowed to see more action, including greater transparency in the investigation into the collapse and the release of all documents related to the train station’s renovation.

Goran Vesic, a former transport minister, resigned days after the accident, among others, who has been charged with the matter.

Some documents about the roof collapse have been made public by the government, but they are incomplete, according to Belgrade-based experts from the Faculty of Civil Engineering.

Other important demands include a reduction of arrests of protesters at rallies, abolition of attacks on demonstrators, and increased government funding for education.

Snap vote?

Farmers and bikers provided protection for the largely student protesters during the blockade. As the rallies continue, there have been numerous instances of violence against the demonstrators, and at least two have been struck by cars.

Vucic addressed the audience on Monday evening, praising the nation’s response to the Novi Sad accident and promising to strike up a dialogue with the protesters.

Prior to this, he had claimed that “Western foreign agents” controlled them.

However, the focus now turns to the possibility of snap elections.

Vucevic’s resignation must now be confirmed by Serbia’s parliament, which has 30 days to choose a new government or call snap elections.

According to pro-government media, Vucic will vote on a new prime minister-designate on Tuesday night and hold early elections.