Students: Blockade of School of Philosophy Nonpartisan

Faculty of Philosophy, Belgrade (BETAPHOTO/MILOS MISKOV)

A group of students that is blocking the Belgrade School of Philosophy said on Dec. 3 that the blockade was nonpartisan, rejecting claims by some media outlets that they were “henchmen and agents.”

“The blockade of the school was decided by unanimous vote on the part of several hundred male and female students of the School of Philosophy who attended a plenary session of the School of Philosophy. The blockade of the school was carried out peacefully, without incident, and we plan on continuing to conduct this blockade,” the group of students said.

The blocking of several colleges in Belgrade and Novi Sad began symbolically at 11:52 a.m. on Dec. 2 which is when 15 people died when a concrete overhang at the Novi Sad collapsed on Nov. 1.

Students are blocking the School of Dramatic Arts, the School of Philosophy, the School of Mathematics, the Belgrade University Rectorate as well as the Novi Sad School of Philosophy. On Dec. 3 students also blocked the Belgrade School of Political Sciences.

The students are demanding that all of the documents that are connected to the reconstruction of the Novi Sad railway station be publicized and that the charges against protesters who were arrested during demonstrations be dropped. They are also demanding that police raise charges with the relevant public prosecutor in Belgrade against individuals who “physically assaulted students and professors.”