La Marx International

On March 15, Belgrade, the capital of Serbia, witnessed the largest demonstration in its history, even larger than the one that overthrew the dictatorship of the genocidal Slobodan Milošević on October 5, 2000. The Serbian capital brought together more than 700,000 protesters in a city of less than two million inhabitants, causing the human tide to take two hours to cross the 450 meters of Branko Bridge, which spans the Sava River. It is a true revolution that is demolishing the capitalist government of Aleksandar Vučić, who has led the Serbian government since 2014.

The protests are part of a cycle of demonstrations sparked by the deaths of 15 people when a shelter collapsed during construction work at the Novi Sad train station, followed by a decade of targeted mobilizations in Belgrade. These protests began with demonstrations against the Belgrade Waterfront urban development initiative in 2016, continued from 2017 to 2020, mainly against political violence and abuses of power, and have continued since the pandemic to the present day, stemming from allegations of electoral irregularities and the management of President Aleksandar Vučić. But Vučić confronts the mobilization with a patronage system on which a significant segment of the Serbian population depends, and which distributes public salaries, public-private concessions, and ties to companies, representing 25% of the electorate. Based on this patronage system, he confronted the rise of the people against his government.

Vučić pro-imperialist and pro-Putin government

Aleksandar Vučić leads a pro-imperialist government that signed an agreement with the EU for lithium exploration in Serbian mines and for the mass production of battery chains essential for electric vehicles. But at the same time, Vučić maintains excellent relations with Putin, the war criminal in Ukraine, and with Viktor Orbán of Hungary, transforming the Vučić government into the living expression of the falsehood of the "Decoupling Theory," which claims that China and Russia are going to war against the US. "Decoupling" theorists are constantly refuted by the reality that shows the governments of the US, China, and Russia are working together in defense of capitalism, and the clearest example of this is the Vučić government itself.

Vučić has ties to Moscow, but also to the EU and Beijing, which is one of the largest investors in the Balkan country. Xi Jinping visited him last year and has very good relations with Donald Trump, with whom he has held meetings. In other words, Vučić is on the side of US imperialism and at the same time with countries like China and Russia, which are capitalist but not imperialist, so Vučić cannot hide behind the idea that these protests are a conspiracy by the EU, Putin, or the US to overthrow him. Some of the world's most reactionary regimes have been claiming that those organizing the so-called "color revolutions" were driven by a foreign power, but Vučić can no longer argue that. What is happening in Serbia is a revolution led by a youth shouting "pumpaj" (pump up, pump up).

The youth organization has been involved in interprovincial initiatives with the aim of connecting Belgrade with other Serbian cities. This led to protesters gathering on February 15 in Kragujevac, from Novi Sad to Zrenjanin, but also from Belgrade to Niš and other cities. The so-called "marathons ," in which activists traveled great distances to be welcomed, were a departure from previous demonstrations. The government responded by blocking transportation to the capital during the demonstrations, both buses and trains.

Protest groups have denounced the use of sonic cannons during a fifteen-minute silent tribute to the victims. The students have been called ćaci, a mocking derivation of the word đaci (students). However, the students are demanding the publication of all documentation on the reconstruction of the Novi Sad train station and an investigation into possible misuse of European funds at the facility. They also demand the identification and prosecution of those responsible for attacks during student protests and their dismissal if they hold public office, the withdrawal of criminal charges against the detained students, and the suspension of legal proceedings against them.

In other words, the mobilization is confronting a government supported not only by the EU, but also by Putin, Xi Jinping, and the US. Objectively, the Serbian people are carrying out a mobilization and revolution against capitalism, which favors the Ukrainian revolution, the central revolutionary process in Europe. Right now, the protests are at their peak of social support, as a massive protest movement that has spread throughout the country, condemning the criminal negligence of the authorities that led to this tragedy. This movement has continued to intensify, with a series of student occupations and calls for a general strike.

Let's support the revolution in Serbia

From La Marx International, we support the Serbian revolution. The defeat of the Vučić government is necessary to continue the blow to global capitalism. Even though Vučić and the Serbian Progressive Party are organizing counter-demonstrations in Jagodina, bringing busloads of protesters and many receiving money to attend, these demonstrations, organized by Vučić in a very small town of 35,000 inhabitants, demonstrate how weak the Serbian government is. The Serbian Progressive Party government has been suffering a crisis with the resignation of the prime minister, who arrived too late to quell the protests. The absolute majority of the people no longer want to see Vučić as president. The struggle is even resonating throughout the region from the former Yugoslavia. Students in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Slovenia, Macedonia, and even Poland showed their solidarity with the Serbian students. Long live the Serbian revolution! Out with Vučić and the Serbian Progressive Party!