Scuffles and fistfights broke out between ruling party and opposition lawmakers in Serbia’s parliament on Monday, weeks after a fatal train station roof collapse that has fueled tensions in the Balkan state.
The opposition wanted to discuss who is responsible for the crash that killed 15 people at the station in the northern city of Novi Sad on November 1, while government officials, who have a majority in the Serbian parliament, tried to pass a bill on the elections next year. state budget.
The opposition displayed a banner with a red handprint reading “blood is on your hands,” while the ruling party responded with a banner accusing the opposition of wanting “war while Serbia wants to work.”
/AP
Clashes broke out as the two sides tried to grab each other’s banner.
Serbian parliament speaker Ana Brnabic quickly accused the opposition of trying to come to power through force and outside help.
“There is no indication, not an iota of doubt that these are people who are well organized, who are quite well trained, and in my opinion well paid, to create chaos in Serbia and destabilize our country,” she said.
Serbia’s autocratic President Aleksandar Vucic said on Instagram that the opposition’s “daily bullying” and “savage behavior” would not be tolerated.
Filip Stevanovic/Anadolu via Getty Images
“I want to reassure citizens and tell them that we will respond to their rudeness, rudeness and arrogance with even more work in the future.” he said. “Today they have tried to prevent retirees from receiving their higher pensions and public sector workers their higher salaries. That won’t work.”
Opposition leader Dragan Djilas said the speaker had “closed” parliament by “refusing to allow a debate on who is responsible for the tragedy at the train station.”
“She started this when she refused the request of more than eighty opposition members to put on the agenda a debate about confidence in the government because of the murder and crime in Novi Sad,” Djilas said.
The collapse of the concrete roof raised tensions across the Balkan region, leading to widespread anger towards the government and protests.
The BBC reported that one demonstration saw more than 20,000 people take to the streets and squares – the largest protest the city has seen in decades. Last week, prosecutors ordered the questioning of 11 people in connection with the disaster, the BBC reported.
According to the BBC, the former Serbian construction minister was among those arrested. Goran Vesic resigned in the days after the collapse, but he denied any blame.
“I cannot accept any blame for the deaths,” he said, “because I, and the people who work with me, do not have an ounce of responsibility for the tragedy that occurred.”
Stringer/REUTERS
The train station, an important junction, was recently renovated as part of a Serbian-Chinese collaboration. Critics claim that corruption, poor supervision and inadequate construction contributed to the tragedy.
The collapse became a flashpoint for broader dissatisfaction with Serbia’s authoritarian rule, reflecting growing public demands for transparency as the country undertakes major infrastructure projects, mostly with Chinese state-owned companies.
