I wonder how much Soros has invested in this enterprise?
Tens of thousands of anti-government protesters converge in Belgrade
Tens of thousands of protesters converged on Serbia's capital Belgrade on Saturday for what could be the largest single rally since the start of an anti-corruption protest movement triggered by a deadly railway station roof collapse in the city of Novi Sad last November.
As a sea of people flooded the streets of downtown Belgrade, the rally was likely set to be the single largest protest since the anti-graft movement first coalesced.
The movement formed after 15 people were killed when a railway station roof collapsed in the city of Novi Sad in November.
The railway station disaster ignited long-simmering bitterness over alleged corruption and lax oversight in construction projects.
But with supporters of President Aleksandar Vucic's embattled government also mobilising in the capital as well, there was growing concern about the risk of clashes.
In statements issued on social media, students urged those attending the rally to act "in a calm and responsible manner"."The purpose of this movement is not an incursion into institutions, nor to attack those who do not think as we do," read one statement.
"This movement must not be misused."
The rally was due to officially start at 4:00pm (1500 GMT) and run to 9:00 pm, but thousands had already amassed hours in advance.
The European Union and the United Nations on Friday appealed to the government ahead of the demonstration to respect the right to demonstrate.
For weeks, the student-led protesters have criss-crossed the country, holding rallies in Serbia's major cities.
And who is supporting them in this endeavor?
They have also taken their anti-corruption crusade to the rural villages and towns that have long been the backbone of support for Vucic's government.
Their return to Belgrade on Saturday will likely further ramp up already compounding pressure on the government, with several high ranking officials, including the prime minister, having resigned in recent months.
Ahead of the main afternoon protest, thousands stood for 15 minutes of silence beginning at 11:52am to honour the victims of the Novi Sad tragedy, with the time marking the moment of the roof's collapse.
Farmers, students, bikers and other civilians mingled along the main thoroughfares in downtown Belgrade, as a parade of tractors headed toward the parliament.
"We came for justice. I hope that after this protest, things will change," Milica Stojanovic, a student at the Faculty of Biology in Belgrade, told AFP.
'I will not be pressured'
But supporters of the government were also mobilising in the capital, including ultranationalists, militia members, and alleged football hooligans who have set up barricades near the parliament.
That has led to fears of a confrontation with the student-led demonstrators planning to march by the parliament later Saturday.
Riot police had also fanned out near the encampment, which is surrounded with barricades and farming tractors.
On Friday evening, Vucic took to the airways with a defiant message as demonstrators began to trickle into the city, vowing to not back down in the face of mass protests.
"Just to be clear, I will not be pressured," said Vucic during a national televised address.
"I'm the president of Serbia and I won't let the streets set the rules in this country."
He went on to call on all sides to refrain from using violence and instructed police to not use excessive force.
On Friday night, thousands lined Belgrade's streets to welcome student protesters arriving in the capital after they marched for days from cities across Serbia.
The interior ministry put the number of those who had amassed in the capital late Friday at around 31,000.
"There definitely won't be any violence here because we all came with the same purpose – to wait for the people who marched, the people who are liberating Serbia," said Tijana Djuric – a 20-year-old student at the Faculty of Economics in Belgrade.
'Regime escalating tensions'
Some analysts however warned that the situation could escalate.
"We can already see for a few days that the regime is trying to escalate tensions," said political analyst Srdjan Cvijic.
"It is creating a Potemkin village of support in front of the presidency with pro-government demonstrators who are paid."
Pressure has been mounting in the days leading up to Saturday's rally.
Government-backed media have broadcast increasingly inflammatory accusations, saying the students are planning to launch a "coup".
Earlier, Vucic himself accused the demonstrators of organising "large-scale violence".
Vucic has warned of a "final" showdown on Saturday while some student protesters said they would continue to rally until their demands for greater accountability were met.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP)
‘Expel Soros agents’ — Hungary issues list of demands to EU
Viktor Orban has urged Brussels to strongly protect the national interests of member states
Brussels should take decisive steps towards denying EU membership to Ukraine and ending the influence of foreign agents linked to billionaire George Soros on the bloc’s policies, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has stated. He has called for the absolute national sovereignty of member states over domestic issues.
In a post on X on Saturday, Orban urged Brussels to “expel Soros agents” from the European Commission and “remove corrupt lobbyists” from the European Parliament.
The Hungarian prime minister has a long history of opposing foreign-funded organizations in his country, particularly those sponsored by Soros. Orban has repeatedly accused the Hungarian-American magnate of meddling in Hungary’s domestic affairs, undermining traditional family values, and promoting a globalist agenda.
Orban also called for “a Union, but without Ukraine,” having demanded “peace, freedom, and unity.”
Budapest has strongly opposed the rapid acceptance of Ukraine into the EU, citing the potential harm to the bloc’s economy. Kiev applied for membership shortly after the escalation of the conflict with Russia in February 2022 and was granted candidate status within just three months.
The demands voiced by Orban were included in a broader list that contained calls for protecting Europe’s Christian heritage, banning “the unnatural re-education of children,” eliminating debt, and establishing equality before the law for all members of the bloc.
Orban emphasized that the Hungarian people expect Brussels to restore the competencies unlawfully taken from member states. He demanded “national sovereignty” and the right to “a strong veto for national governments.”
He also urged the EU authorities to stop obstructing the Hungarian National Guard from protecting the country’s borders. “Do not bring in migrants, and remove those who have arrived illegally,” he wrote.
Since the 2015 migrant crisis, Orban’s government has taken tough measures to curb the influx of migrants, including building border fences along Hungary’s southern borders with Serbia and Croatia and rejecting EU-mandated refugee quotas. These policies have triggered legal challenges, including a €200-million fine from the European Court of Justice last year for non-compliance with the bloc’s asylum rules.
Four years ago, Budapest updated child protection regulations to ban the promotion of LGBTQ topics in media, advertising, and educational materials accessible to minors. The move sparked outrage in Brussels, which launched legal action against Budapest, referred the case to the European Court of Justice, and froze billions in EU funds intended for Hungary over what it claimed were violations of fundamental human rights.
Are rights that have been invented in the last 30 years 'fundamental human rights'?
Romania should be ejected from the EU for having surrendered its democracy to whomever is controlling Romania's electoral authority and Constitutional Court. Is anyone investigating these people for Swiss bank accounts?
Romanian right-wing leader barred from presidential election
Diana Iovanovici-Sosoaca has accused Brussels and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen of hindering democratic processes in her country
Romania’s electoral authority has rejected right-wing politician Diana Iovanovici-Sosoaca’s bid to run in the country’s upcoming presidential election. The decision, announced Saturday, marks the second time the politician has been barred from the race.
Sosoaca, a former lawyer and MEP for the nationalist S.O.S. Romania party, was disqualified from last year’s annulled election after the country’s Constitutional Court ruled that her anti-Western rhetoric and support for closer ties with Russia violated Romania’s democratic framework.
The politician, however, filed a new bid with the Central Electoral Bureau on Thursday, arriving at the headquarters wearing boxing gloves and vowing to “fight the system,” which she has long accused of being undemocratic and dictatorial.
According to local media, the election bureau cited the Constitutional Court’s 2024 ruling in its decision to reject Sosoaca’s new bid, with ten members voting against her candidacy and only three in favor. Following the decision, Sosoaca declared that she had once again proven Romania “doesn’t have democracy” and vowed to continue her political fight.
Speaking to RT on Thursday, Sosoaca accused the European Commission and its president, Ursula von der Leyen, of orchestrating her previous removal from the race. “Ursula von der Leyen has Romanian politicians in her hand and orders them what decisions to make,” she stated, slamming the commission president as “the main opponent of sovereignty in Romania, as well as all other countries in Europe.”
Sosoaca, who calls herself a “sovereignist” fighting for Romania’s future, blames the economic problems in the country on Brussels’ policies, especially with regard to Russia, and calls the EU a “dictatorship.”
“Romania needs a negotiator who will take our country out of the EU’s losing logic,” she said, adding that EU policies, including sanctions against Russia, had “bankrupted its own economy” and caused unnecessary conflict, with “all European countries paying for this stupidity.”
Sosoaca has until midnight on Saturday to appeal the decision. The first round of the election, a rerun after last November’s vote was annulled, is scheduled for May 4. So far, 14 candidates have applied to run, four of whom – including the first-round winner in the annulled vote and another staunch NATO and EU critic, Calin Georgescu – have been rejected.
Georgescu won the first round of last November’s election, but the Constitutional Court overturned the result amid allegations of electoral violations and claims that Russia had run an online campaign to promote him. Moscow denied any involvement in Romania’s electoral process. An investigation earlier this year revealed that the irregularities may have stemmed from a consulting firm linked to the pro-Western National Liberal Party, which allegedly sought to derail another candidate but inadvertently boosted Georgescu instead.
