Opposition joins new protest in Belgrade

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Belgraders have started gathering outside Serbia's Parliament again on Wednesday in yet another anti-government protest, following last night's riot in the capital, N1 reported.

 Opposition leaders joined the protest, demanding that authorities stop “lying” to people and restrain police brutality against protesters.

The police are present in much higher numbers than on Tuesday night when they seemed surprised by thousands of demonstrators who protested against President Aleksandar Vucic's announcement of a new curfew due to the worsening situation with the coronavirus epidemic.

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Demonstrators say they lost trust in both authorities and the medical anti-epidemic Crisis Team which they accuse of being Vucic's and Government's mouthpiece by hiding the real number of infected and dead ahead of the June 21 general elections.

The representative of the leading opposition group, the Alliance for Serbia (SzS), told people outside the Philosophical Faculty that “the people won't accept lies and brutality any more.”

They demand that a new ‘depoliticised Crisis Team,’ is formed and that all police commanders are held responsible for the brutality with which they dispersed the yesterday's protest that followed Vucic's announcement of the next weekend curfew.

Vucic said earlier that the medical experts disagreed with him regarding the curfew and that he would listen to them. The Crisis Team will decide on new anti-coronavirus measures on Thursday.

Another opposition demand is “an objective reporting of the state RTS TV about protests,” which last night's aired a martial arts movie during a serious clash between people and police which left wounded demonstrators and police officers.

Janko Veselinovic, one of the opposition leaders, said there was information about “criminals who infiltrate into the crowd aiming at provoking incidents between the demonstrators and opposition.”

He called on people to keep physical distance and put face masks on.

“We don't direct this protest, people do. We won't be on the first, but either on the last line, we'll request that our demands are met,” Veselinovic said.

SimilarAnother opposition leader Bosko Obradovic he and his colleagues joined people in the protest and pledged with the authorities to come to their senses and prevent a looming civil war.

A similar protest was organised in the northern city of Novi Sad.