Despite a torrential rain, tens of thousands of demonstrators protested again on Saturday, May 27, in Belgrade, Serbia, against the violence, a movement born in the wake of two deadly shootings that turned into a demonstration of anger against the government.

Protesters carrying flower umbrellas gathered in front of parliament before heading to the headquarters of national television (RTS) which they surrounded. They demanded the resignation of the channel's management and editors-in-chief, accused of being the "mouthpieces" of power.

" READ ALSO – After the shootings in Serbia, the cult of violence on television indicted

Gathered under the slogan "Serbia against violence", the demonstrators have taken to the streets of the Serbian capital en masse every week since the killings that occurred in early May in the Balkan country less than 48 hours apart.

On 3 May, a 13-year-old boy killed nine classmates and a guard at a school in Belgrade. Less than 48 hours later, a young man murdered eight people in two villages near the capital.

People initially demonstrated in mourning, but the protest seems to have turned into a broad movement of anger against the rule of President Aleksandar Vucic, who has ruled the Balkan country for nearly a decade.

"I'm here because I'm tired of lies and corruption," Dusan Valent, 40, told AFP. "Nothing will change here, until people realize it's possible and they have a choice."

See also: Thousands of Serbs protest violence after two shootings

Demonstrations that threaten the government

The protesters are demanding the revocation of the licences of pro-government television stations that publish violent content and accuse the government of having created or tolerated a "climate of violence" in Serbia. They are also demanding the resignations of the Minister of the Interior and the head of the intelligence services.

The last time Serbs marched so massively was during the 2000 protests that led to the fall of Belgrade strongman Slobodan Milosevic.

In response, President Aleksandar Vucic himself organized a large rally of his supporters in Belgrade from all over Serbia on Friday on buses, prompting human rights defenders to say that some protesters had been pressured to participate in the event.

The head of state again accused the opposition parties of having "tried to abuse the tragedy" for political purposes while being more conciliatory than in recent times towards the protesters themselves.

Vucic steps down as party leader

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic left the leadership of his party (SNS, conservatives) on Saturday, while announcing the creation of a political movement.

The 53-year-old, who dominates the local political scene, is often criticised by his critics for his "autocratic" way of running the country and his stranglehold on media and public institutions.

During his big rally resembling an electoral campaign rally on Friday evening in Belgrade, he announced the creation at the end of June of the Movement for the People and for the State, supposed to attract intellectuals, artists and other figures of the country.

"From tomorrow I will (only) be president of all citizens of Serbia and will no longer be the president of a political party," the head of state said.

"It is a way to overcome crises that could potentially erupt within the SNS" and "by creating a new movement, he wants to secure another political mandate," said Bojan Klacar, director of an independent election observatory, CESID.

At the proposal of Aleksandar Vucic, the current Minister of Defence, Milos Vucevic, was elected head of the SNS.

With AFP

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