Tens of thousands protest in Serbia on anniversary of deadly roof collapse

By Ivana Sekularac

NOVI SAD, Serbia (Reuters) -Tens of thousands of protesters poured into Serbia's second city on Saturday a year after a railway station roof collapse that killed 16 people, unleashing discontent over alleged corruption and a lack of accountability many blame for the disaster.

Months of protests across Serbia, stoked by anger over the failure so far to prosecute those responsible for the roof collapse have rattled President Aleksandar Vučić's long grip on power and raised calls for early elections.

Protesters streamed into the northern city of Novi Sad, where the disaster occurred, in cars, buses or on foot, some having walked long distances, witnesses said. One of Novi Sad's main boulevards was packed with people.

The protesters - many of them young people - observed 16 minutes of silence - one for every victim - from 11:52 a.m. (1052 GMT), when the roof caved in following renovation work on November 1, 2024.

Protesters held up large red hearts bearing the names of the collapse victims, clutched white flowers and laid wreaths in front of the railway station.

The tearful father of one of the victims, dressed in black, stood for hours staring at his daughter's name affixed among others to the station's perimeter fence.

There were no reports of violence, which had marred some protests during the summer when riot police used stun grenades and tear gas to break up rallies.

'WE SAY THAT THIS IS ENOUGH'

"This is a major tragedy for the Serbian people. We cannot bring those people back but we can feel the pain with their families and say that this is enough," said Sladjana Burmaz, a 51-year-old economist from the central town of Valjevo.

"These people were not killed by accident, their deaths were the result of a poor system, poor politics ... Justice would be served if those responsible were held accountable," she said.

Vučić, in an Instagram post, published a photo of himself in a church holding a candle at a commemoration ceremony in the capital Belgrade for the victims of the disaster.

"Let the names of those killed be a reminder that human life is above any divisions (in society)," Vučić wrote. The government, he added, had designated Saturday as a day of national mourning.

The protest movement, led by students, academics and opposition leaders, accuse Vucic and his populist nationalist party of presiding over corruption, shoddy public services, nepotism and curbs on media freedoms. They deny the accusations.

INDEPENDENT REPORT TO EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT

An independent commission of professors, judges, and technical experts that investigated the disaster reported to the European Parliament last week that it had found high-level state graft that led to poor construction standards and the hiring of unqualified subcontractors.

Government officials have denied such accusations. Recently, Vučić and Parliament Speaker Ana Brnabic said the roof collapse could have been an act of terrorism.

Prosecutors have indicted several senior state officials on charges of endangering public safety, but a court has yet to confirm the indictment, preventing a trial from going ahead.

(Reporting by Ivana Sekularac; editing by Mark Heinrich)