Anti-corruption protesters clash with Serbian police
Skirmishes broke out for a second consecutive day on Friday during a court protest in Serbia, as political tensions continue to simmer more than six months after the onset of large-scale anti-corruption demonstrations in the Balkan nation.
Riot police in the northern city of Novi Sad used pepper spray and pushed away protesters demanding the release of a group of activists jailed for a third month for alleged anti-state activities, News.Az reports citing foreign media.
The six activists were detained in March after secret recordings of their alleged plotting of anti-state actions were broadcast on pro-government media in Serbia ahead of a major rally in the capital, Belgrade.
Police also used pepper spray in Novi Sad on Thursday, while tensions mounted in the central town of Kraljevo during a session of the local municipal assembly, as well as the southern city of Nis, where Vucic plans a weekend rally. Students there have announced they would organize a counter-gathering on Saturday.
Hundreds of thousands of people attended the huge March 15 rally in the Serbian capital that was part of a nationwide movement which started after a concrete canopy collapsed on Nov. 1 at a train station in Novi Sad killing 16 people.Many in Serbia believe widespread government corruption linked to major infrastructure projects fueled negligence and undermined construction regulations that contributed to the disaster.
Shaken by the protests, the government of populist President Aleksandar Vucic has stepped up pressure on those involved while trying to curb the demonstrations.
Lawyers for the jailed activists in Novi Sad say that accusations against their clients are based on illegal wiretapping and lack evidence of the alleged coup plot. Six more activists have fled the country to avoid arrest over the same incident.
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