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Published April 10, 2025

The Rabbit’s Scream

Massive youth-led protests against government corruption take over the streets of Serbia, as hundreds of thousands of people reach a breaking point.
Is it possible in our world to change the system which governs our lives, even if it’s obvious that it works only for the ruling elite and not for the person on the street? In Serbia, since 2017, civil protests have been almost constant against the corrupt government—a government that is not only draining national funds and funnelling the money through opaque means to elites they established, but also selling out natural resources to foreign companies. This scheme is supported by the people by the people who acquired their privileges by joining the ruling ruling political party. It all made serbian society deeply divided, people in power took absolute control of mainstream media, and manipulated (stole) elections… and yet the serbian president is boastful, with support for him coming from all the major players from west and east… How can you beat such an extensive system? It was discussed many times by opponents—opposition parties, academics, political theorists, but it was becoming obvious that no one had an answer. For sure, nobody imagined the solutions could be sought by the young generation, accused—as everywhere—that they are interested only in looking at their smartphones. I remember a recent talk with an educator from Italy who told me that the whole of the culture will decay because young people don’t read anymore. They don’t even read comics, so even comics will cease to exist soon!On November 1st, 2024, the canopy over the train station in Novi Sad collapsed, killing 15 people. It was obvious that recent reconstruction was improperly done, while millions of Euros were transferred from public funds to the incompetent companies involved. It released great frustration and serbian students began a massive blockade of universities, pretty unexpectedly. Soon, to be joined by a number of middle and even elementary schools. They founded a self-governing network, and distanced themselves from any political party. Foreign factions, even NGOs. The rallies soon grew to gigantic proportions, sometimes including exhausting 100 KM long marches (some groups took on marathon runs, and some cycled) with common people along the way preparing food and supplying basic needs. It turned out that the imaginative force of the youth was contagious—in some of the protests, they were joined not only by their professors and fellow citizens, but such diverse groups as farmers on tractors, taxi drives, even bikers on motorcycles! Perhaps the crisis in Serbia reached the point of extreme desperation on a mass level and it produced something that resembles “the scream of a rabbit”—an otherwise silent creature that produces a loud shriek when facing a deadly danger… just by coincidence, Belgrade’s faculty of political sciences has chosen an innocent rabbit toy as the mascot of their protest.Being aware that they can’t directly fight the repressive system of the state, students in serbia were armed with persistence, solidarity, and humor. Some of the banners at the protests were hilarious, but often based on a wordplay, and impossible to translate. Maybe that’s one of the reasons why these protests were accepted and approved in the countries which were part of yugoslavia, and able to get the joke. Still, the banners such as “we want everything, since we have nothing” could be universally understood. And yet everyone was struck by the situation that young people were suddenly seen as “liberators” of society; it was all very emotional, and at student protests you would very often see grown men crying in the street… one of the moments of great symbiotic significance was when, during their own 80 km long march from Belgrade to Novi Sad, students met an old man who greeted them with a bow, while they chanted “grandpa we love you!” In fact, protests of young people are recurrent event here, and each generation learned from past experiences. Belgrade saw the upheaval against joining the axis back in 1941, then the student protests of 1968, and against the Milosevic regime of 1996/1997…But the most impressive aspect of the 2024/2025 protests is not only the use of social media, which enabled good coordination, but also the methodology based on direct democracy. All the decisions were made in students’ plenums held in university classrooms, and lasting for hours, so that every move was carefully discussed. Actions were assisted by groups (security, media, etc) formed by the affinities of the volunteering students. In order to prevent manipulation by the regime or just any subject from the outside, any kind of leadership is being avoided. Each plenum is conducted by 3 newly selected coordinators and happens at a fast pace - time limits are projected on a large screen, allowing 30 seconds for remarks and 30 seconds for suggestions. Anyone is welcome to propose an idea, which is then voted by all. An internal system of response is being used in the plenums. For example, instead of applause, agreement is expressed by a silent saving motion of the hands. And even if at this moment in time, nobody knows how the situation in this country is going to unspool, atmosphere in society has already changed…

Sources

Associated Press, “‘Like a sound from hell: Was an illegal sonic weapon used on protesters in Serbia?” NPR, March 26, 2025.

Guy De Launey, “Serbia’s Largest-Ever Rally Sees 325,000 Protest Against Government.” BBC, March 15 2025.  

Jovana Gec and Dusan Stojanovic, “Over 100,000 join in protest rally in Belgrade against Serbia’s president and government.” Associated Press, March 15, 2025.

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