Anti-government protesters march in Belgrade

Anti-government protesters march in Belgrade

One of the Dveri leaders, Bosko Obradovic, said the rally was in fact organized "against the government of Tony Blair, in which Aleksandar Vucic serves only as a spokesperson," referring to the recent hiring of the former British prime minister as a consultant.

According to Obradovic, Dveri's task is "to gather together a strong opposition that will put an end to Serbia's downfall that has been ongoing since October 2000." He announced that the first task of the anti-government protest is to force early elections that would see "patriotic forces" return to parliament. Obradovic described the ruling SNS party as "the biggest fraud in the history of Serbia," and accused it of controlling and manipulating the media. He spoke in favor of Serbia's closer ties with Russia, to which the rally responded by chanting, "Serbia-Russia, we don't need the (European) Union."

Academician Kosta Cavoski also addressed the protest to say the Brussels agreement reached during the EU-sponsored Kosovo negotiations "removed the last vestiges of Serb statehood" in Kosovo and in that way recognized the unilaterally declared independence of the province. He also accused the prime minister and his government of committing "high treason."

Another member of the Dveri leadership, Vladan Glisic, read a list of demands that included an end to Serbia moving closer to the EU and NATO, annulling of the Brussels agreement, "exiting the slavery of the IMF," reestablishing the previous level of salaries and pensions, and meeting the demands of the teachers on strike. Glisic also demanded higher taxes on agricultural products imported from the EU, an end to plans to sell Telekom and EPS, and "liberating the media from the pressure of the ruling party."

The protest that, according to police estimates, gathered "more than 1,000 people," ended without incidents with the participants marching from the government building to the public broadcaster RTS, where the Dveri officials once again asked that this media outlet engages in "objective reporting."

The protesters carried flags of Serbia, Russia, Novorossiya (New Russia) and the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic, as well as portraits of Russian President Vladimir Putin, and shouted offensive slogans against the Serbian prime minister.