In Belgrade, several hundred people of all generations gathered in front of the Assembly on Sunday evening. They came to support Diana Hrka, who has been on hunger strike since Sunday at 11:52 demanding punishment for those responsible for the death of his son Stefan and 15 other people who fell victim to a canopy in Novi Sad on November 1 last year. She said she would not leave until her demands were met. In the evening, the situation was tense on several occasions.
Around 7:00 p.m., the veterans removed Diana Hrka from the place where she is on hunger strike, and took her away.
A cannon shot was heard, it is not known from which side it was fired, whether from the side of Ćicilernd or the people who came to support Hrka.
Diana Hrka returned in front of the Assembly around 8:00 p.m. She contacted the police at one point.
"Policemen, let me ask you. Do not allow bloodshed to occur, to leave Ćaciland. The whole world and Serbia will know that the Serbian police attacked their people because of Ćaciland. No one will spare you either," said Diana Hrka to the police over the megaphone.
Both she and the veterans repeated several times that the riots were caused by people who came out of Pionirski Park and were missed by the police. Nevertheless, the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, as well as the MUP and BIA, accused the people who came to support Diana Hrka for this.
Video: Maja Vasić-Nikolić
Photo: Vreme/Katarina StevanovićDiana Hrka is on hunger strike in front of the National Assembly building
Ćaciland is crowded, because the police, who normally surrounded it in several rows, let the people who were filling it up.
Photo: Vreme/Katarina StevanovićIt is constantly tense in front of the Serbian Parliament
Soon, songs from the Ćaci repertoire were heard from there.
"They made a concert, so people could dance," comments a young man, while the lyrics "Let's go to battle, all heroes" are heard from the speakers.
"They are celebrating the death of 16 people," adds another.
The police are also in front of the Old Palace. On the other side of the fence are a large number of citizens who protest by blowing whistles and vivuzelas.
Traffic is closed near the Faculty of Law down Bulevar Kralja Aleksandra towards the Assembly.
Earlier, students in the blockade sent the following message:
After 19:00, the gendarmerie came.
Photo: Vreme/Katarina StevanovićGendarmerie
How it all started
A large number of masked and helmeted police are present throughout the day. They are around the assembly building, and around Ćaciland. They set up a cordon between the people in Ćaciland and those on the other side. There are also war veterans.
Diana Hrka was sitting on a bench next to the fence of the Parliament, surrounded by the citizens of Belgrade.
Photo: Vreme/Katarina StevanovićSupport for Dijana Hrka
Police reinforcements arrived before 6:30 p.m., and before that, police from Novi Sad, Čačak and Novi Pazar were heard coming from the megaphone.
Reinforcements arrived from Ulica Kralja Milana Street, from the lower side of Pionirski Park, in at least two police cars and accompanied by three police cars on rotation.
Photo: Vreme/Katarina StevanovićAmplification
People are chanting "Let's go people!", sending derogatory messages to Vučić, and "Go to Kosovo!" to the police.
Hrka shouts to the police: "Look me in the eyes, take off your shields", and tells people not to fall for provocations.
Photo: Vreme/Katarina StevanovićDiana Hrka
An awning has been erected around the place where Diana Hrka is, there is water and flowers around her, she is guarded by veterans.
The police cordon, deployed next to the fence of the tent settlement towards Nikola Pašić Square, missed around 17:30 a large group of people who joined the people gathered in front of the tents on the plateau in front of the Serbian Parliament, and several dozen people came to the tents from the direction of the City Parliament, next to Pionirski Park, FoNet reporter reports.
The situation was occasionally tense because some citizens resented both the entry of the police and the gathered men, one of whom tried to steal the Insider journalist's phone and told her not to record.
The Insider reporter reported that there are groups of men around the edges of Pionirski Park, in the dark.
Video: Maja Vasić-Nikolić
Vučić: The cowards ran away
The President of the Republic of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, said tonight on Informer that "competent state authorities are ready to respond to everything that happens on the street." He also says that "the plan of the blockaders is to damage the reputation of the country and be on television", and that his side should show restraint.
The first man of the country made this statement after war veterans said that the five soldiers actually started the entire riot.
"I'm not sure if you've already seen all the videos, they tried to attack. Of course, it's about cowards, they came to the fence, so they ran away faster, when they saw that the answer was ready. It's very important to emphasize what their intention was. They used bottles, firecrackers, torches with the desire to set people on fire, but it's not unexpected," Vučić said in his version.
He referred to yesterday's meeting in Novi Sad, which, according to the Archive of Public Meetings, was attended by more than 100.000 people.
"After yesterday's debacle in Novi Sad, so the number of people many times smaller than expected, they could not make any smart and meaningful decision, but to attack," he said.
Vučić said that there was also an attack on the premises of the Serbian Progressive Party.
"They decided to attack freedom, a symbol of resistance, to various pressures, a symbol of Serbia's existence, which is the Pioneer Park or as we all popularly call it Ćaciland. They will never succeed in destroying it, because such symbols never fall into the hands of those who would destroy everything that is progressive, everything that is normal and everything that is good in a country. They cannot tolerate democracy, they cannot stand different opinions, they cannot stand a single place in the country on "to which those who think differently gather. Tonight, they attacked the premises of the Serbian Progressive Party," said Vučić, reports Blic.
Police: They set fire to the tent in which there were people
The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Serbia and the BIA strongly condemned the fact that, as they stated, the citizens limited the unannounced gathering and attacked those in the declared one - in Pionirski Park.
"They threw various objects and pyrotechnics in the direction of the gathered people. On that occasion, one of the tents in which people were staying was set on fire, which seriously threatened their safety and there was a real danger of serious consequences," the statement reads.
In the following announcement, they said that they are working to find and arrest the people who disturbed the order. They gave an example of a man with initials who allegedly showed his genitals near Ćaciland.
