On the night of January 27, 2025, four men armed with baseball bats attacked two separate groups of university students who were organizing protest actions.
At the time of the first attack, a group of students was putting up posters on a street in Novi Sad, inviting people to a demonstration on February 1. As they passed a building owned by the ruling Serbian Progressive Party in Novi Sad, armed men came out. They chased the students down the street, and physically assaulted at least four people. Immediately after that, the attackers drove to the Petefi Šandor Elementary School and ambushed another group of university students who were hanging posters and writing slogans about the February 1st demonstration. An Academy of Arts student suffered serious injuries, including a dislocated jaw and hematomas all over her body. Several other students sustained minor injuries.
Police arrested the attackers, who were charged with inflicting serious bodily injury (Article 121 of the Serbian Criminal Code) and violent behavior committed by prior agreement (Article 344 of the Serbian Criminal Code). On July 2, local media reported that Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić pardoned the four accused activists. They were released from custody, and the charges were annulled.
The protests occurred against the backdrop of the nationwide anti-corruption movement, “Stop, Serbia,” to demand better governmental accountability in the wake of the deadly collapse of the Novi Sad railway station canopy, which killed 16 people in November 2024. The Serbian government mounted a campaign to discredit the protesters, triggering violence against students and faculty members.
Scholars at Risk is concerned about an attack on student protesters. Members of the public must refrain from violence and respect the right to freedom of association and freedom of expression. In addition to harm to the immediate victims, violent attacks on students undermine academic freedom and a democratic society generally.
Sources:
*SAR identified this incident in data made publicly available by the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED)
https://www.danas.rs/vesti/drustvo/zavrseno-rociste-aktivistima-sns-koji-su-tukli-studente-okrivljeni-negirali-krivicu-ana-u-sudnici-prepoznala-napadaca/
https://kossev.info/ru/n1-vucic-pomilovao-cetvoricu-aktivista-sns-optuzenih-za-napad-na-studente-i-lomljenje-vilice-studentkinji/
https://vreme.com/en/vesti/predsednicko-pomilovanje-pravda-za-ljubitelje-bejzbola/
https://www.vreme.com/en/vesti/sta-pise-u-optuznom-predlogu-protiv-sns-junaka-koje-je-vucic-pomilovao/
https://www.021.rs/story/Novi-Sad/Vesti/410981/Sudjenje-aktivistima-SNS-zbog-prebijanja-studenata-u-Novom-Sadu-Sta-se-ne-zna.html
https://serbiantimes.info/en/serious-incident-in-novi-sad-students-attacked-with-bats-at-night-girl-seriously-injured/