"Corruption kills." Behind this message stood tens of thousands of Serbian citizens who take to the streets every day to demand political and criminal responsibility for the collapse of a canopy at the Novi Sad Railway Station, under which 15 people died and two were seriously injured.
Protests are growing day by day. Demonstrations and roadblocks have become an everyday occurrence. Every day, citizens across Serbia gather to observe 15 minutes of silence to pay tribute to the victims.
Students blocked the work of almost all faculties at the three largest state universities, demanding, among other things, the resignations of the Prime Minister and the Mayor of Novi Sad.
"I can't see a scenario in which we will get out of the blockade without the demands being met. I think that a turning point has definitely happened and that this is definitely the beginning of the end," Ana Đurić, a student from Novi Sad, tells DW.
Around 5.000 professors and staff also stood by the students. "Chaos, crime, the reign of ignorance and bad students - that's something you simply can't stand to see," Ljubica Oparnica, a professor at the Faculty of Education, told DW. The students have restored her faith that change is possible.
"I'm really fascinated by the way students work. It's solidarity, and that wall can't be broken through. If we all want the same thing, and it's pretty clear here that we want a new system, a new and different time, I somehow think that the regime simply can't do anything about it."
Support is also coming from the diaspora – from New York to Melbourne. Citizens are gathering in world capitals to show their support, and tennis player Novak Djokovic is sending a message from the Australian Open that he too stands with the students.
Citizens are donating food, private individuals are donating necessary equipment, taxi drivers are offering free rides, and farmers are promising to protect students at protests with tractors.
Hostile state relations
They will probably need the shield, as the pressure on the students in the blockade is increasing. Pro-government tabloids are calling them foreign mercenaries and publishing their personal documents. Members of the security services are visiting their parents.
There have been increasing numbers of physical attacks on protesters on the streets. The situation culminated when, during a fifteen-minute memorial service in Belgrade, a man drove his car into the crowd and hit a law student, sending her to the hospital with serious injuries.
"We are shaken, but that won't scare us, it can only make us even more angry," says Ana Đurić.
General strike
It also angered many citizens who, after the incident, took to the streets in smaller towns across Serbia to protest en masse. For students, it is a sign that society is ripe for a general strike. They believe that everything must stop for change to truly happen. Many have already responded to their call.
The Serbian Bar Association has entered a seven-day work stoppage, and some employees at the Serbian Electric Power Company are also going on strike. As DW has learned, some medical workers and artists employed in public cultural institutions are also preparing to go on strike.
Teachers, with the help of parents, are also suspending classes. Although representative unions have reached an agreement with the Serbian government on a salary increase and declared a moratorium on strikes, the second semester has not started on time in dozens of schools.
"Education cannot be good while there is systemic corruption in society. Education cannot be good while the principle of separation and replacement of power is not respected in society. Education cannot be good while decision-makers are plagiarists, forgers, usurpers and manipulators," said Dušan Kokot from the Independent Union of Teachers of Serbia. They were not among the four representative unions that negotiated with the government over a salary increase and voted to stop work until further notice.
Prime Minister Miloš Vučević announced that inspections will be sent to schools that have suspended operations and announced layoffs.
"I am not threatening anyone, but I have warned everyone and asked them not to play with children and the education system," said Vučević.
Two inspectors have already issued a statement saying they refused to carry out the task, because it conflicts with professional and ethical norms, and in one school all employees signed a statement saying they would resign if any of the employees were exposed to any measures.
Government on the defensive
As protests and solidarity among different sections of society grow, the government is trying to deal with the biggest political crisis of its 12-year rule. Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić accuses protesters of undermining the constitutional order
"All of this is being done by foreign instructors, they come from several Western countries. We know all of this, and there are also some from Eastern countries among those who did dirty work for the Western agent network," said President Vučić.
He offered the opposition an advisory referendum on confidence in the President of the Republic. The opposition rejects this proposal and calls for a transitional government whose task would be to create conditions for fair and honest elections. This is unacceptable for the SNS. They have already launched the "I Trust Vučić" campaign.
"A referendum would be a big challenge even for the government," says political scientist Dušan Spasojević. He believes that everyone will remain on the field of informal struggle.
"It seems that they will now embark on some kind of counter-campaign. There are indications that so-called counter-rallies will be held as early as the end of the week, and I assume that this is another mechanism by which the SNS will try to control the protests," Spasojević tells DW.
Where will Serbia go from this turning point? For professor Ljubica Opranica, there is no dilemma. "It is clear that they will have a hard time surrendering, because they enjoy serious privileges. That is why it seems impossible. But my feeling is that this government will just collapse suddenly like a fallen canopy. We will be surprised. I think they are at the end of their rope," she believes.
Dušan Spasojević is more cautious, but he also believes that there is no turning back from this point. "If the government finds a way to crack down on student protests, that will be a way out of the crisis, but the crisis will return in full force at the first opportunity," Spasojević concludes.
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