The Rector of the University of Belgrade, Vladan Đokić, stated today that students and a large part of the academic public are upset by announcements that there will be riots on Saturday, March 15, when a protest in Belgrade has been announced, reports N1.
Đokić said that these announcements did not come from the students in the blockade and called on everyone to calm tensions and for the protest to pass peacefully and with dignity, like the previous two, in Kragujevac and Niš.
"We have a duty to address everyone, to try to get the ball rolling, to calm tensions and to achieve what the students want - for the protest to be peaceful, safe and without any conflicts and unwanted scenes and incidents, which perhaps some groups and individuals want," said Đokić at the Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory.
He said that there is public unrest due to announcements of certain conflicts and riots.
"We need to be reasonable and behave with dignity on that day," he repeated.
Đokić said that there were protests in both Kragujevac and Niš and that students were not planning riots anywhere.
"There were no students at any of the gatherings calling for violence. This is also the case in Belgrade, they want to peacefully implement their ideas, to achieve a better society. Statements about violence are harmful, they disavow students, their true intentions. It is not right to address students in this way. They have always said that they are in favor of peaceful solutions, and that is the factual situation," the rector said.
As he said, the academic community stands behind its students. "And not only in Belgrade, but also in other cities where faculties are blocked," Đokić stated.
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