Budapest/Zagreb, 6 May 2025 (dpa/Hina/MIA) — Serbian students, who have been protesting against the government for months, have called for early elections for the first time. "We believe that democracy is the only right way to resolve a political crisis of this magnitude," the movement's organizers wrote on X.

The nationwide student protests were triggered by the collapse of a railway station canopy in the northern Serbian city of Novi Sad, which killed 16 people.

Critics blamed the government and the authorities for the incident, accusing them of incompetence and corruption.

The protests have since been joined by large sections of the population, culminating in a mass rally attended by 300,000 in Belgrade on March 15.

With their call for early elections, the student movement is entering new political territory, having previously focused on demanding that the government allow the judiciary to work independently.

They are hoping that the fragmented and divided opposition can present a united front against the ruling Serbian Progressive Party and its partners.

The last parliamentary elections, which were overshadowed by allegations of manipulation, took place in December 2023, just under a year before the accident in Novi Sad. They handed the ruling parties a comfortable majority in parliament.

"We demand the immediate dissolution of the National Assembly and the scheduling of extraordinary parliamentary elections in accordance with Article 109 of the Serbian Constitution," the students wrote on X.

This article stipulates that the President of the Republic may "dissolve the National Assembly on a reasoned proposal from the Government".

The new Serbian government was elected at the end of April, once again from the ruling coalition, after the previous government led by Serbian Progressive Party president Miloš Vučević fell in the wave of student protests.

With strong support from various social groups, students hold the government responsible for corruption and are demanding an organised society, media freedom, impartial reporting, and independent functioning of institutions free from political influence and pressure.

Emphasising the belief that "democracy is the only right way out of the crisis," students have called on citizens to support a list "to which students, through blockades of all higher education institutions in Serbia, will transfer their trust so that truth can prevail on the scales of justice".

They also highlighted that the roots of government corruption have deeply penetrated state institutions, which now face impeded independent operation.

The Social Democratic Party of former Serbian President Boris Tadić said students initiated protests "as a response to deep injustice and sparked the energy of citizens demanding justice and the rule of law".

"Instead of fulfilling students' demands, the regime continued with repression, violence, and brutal propaganda, which only deepened the crisis day by day. Furthermore, the growing number of citizens who have been protesting against the regime for half a year clearly shows that this regime has lost all legitimacy. In such circumstances, elections are the only possible solution," the party said in support of the students.

The Kreni-Promijeni movement and the Ecological Uprising, which is fighting against lithium mining, were among the first to support the students, calling on all ecological organisations and associations to stand with the students and their demands.

In 2000, the Serbian youth movement Otpor contributed significantly to the overthrow of the autocratic leader Slobodan Milošević. gm/rml/mr