Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has called for a “counter-revolution” in response to ongoing student protests, and accused protesters of destroying the economy. 

Vucic made the comment to his supporters after thousands of people gathered in the southern city of Niš on March 1 to mark the fourth month since the deadly Novi Sad railway station disaster. The tragedy has sparked months of student-led protests and led to the resignation of the prime minister and other top officials.

At a raucous gathering of his supporters in Bor on March 2, Vucic claimed that Serbia would recover after “these three months of blockades, destruction, idleness, irresponsibility and devastation”. According to a report by Danas, the president expressed confidence that the government would defeat the protests and that the country would rank among the top three European nations in terms of economic growth this year.

The protests have had economic ramifications, with some analysts, including the governor of Serbia’s central bank, Jorgovanka Tabakovic, claiming that the unrest has prevented the country from achieving an investment-grade rating from Fitch. As bne IntelliNews reported, recent political instability has stymied further upgrades by major international ratings agencies, after Serbia received its first investment grade credit rating from Standard’s & Poor’s last October.

The protests, which began following the November collapse of a canopy roof in Novi Sad that killed 15 people, have become a symbol of widespread public dissatisfaction with the government. Despite Vucic’s attempts to placate the protesters with the dismissal of several high-ranking ministers and the initiation of an anti-corruption campaign, critics argue these measures have been insufficient and largely symbolic, failing to address the deeper issues of corruption and bad governance.

The protests have continued despite the odds, with student demonstrators blocking university faculties since late November. On March 1, participants in the Niš rally voiced anger at the government's failure to prevent such tragedies and hold those responsible accountable. Student leaders have announced plans for another mass rally in Belgrade on March 15.

Vucic, however, has sought to downplay the scale of the protests. Speaking at a rally in Bor, eastern Serbia, he again sought to dismiss the protests as a western-funded "colour revolution" aimed at overthrowing the regime. “We will endure this, they destroyed three months, ruined the economy in three months, but we will manage to rise,” Vucic said. “They don’t care about the demands; they care about the colour revolution”.

The president also lashed out at United Media, the owner of the independent news outlets N1 and Nova.rs, accusing them of spreading “hatred and lies” against his government. In a similar vein, Vucic voiced strong dissatisfaction with state broadcaster RTS, which he claimed had become aligned with opposition political parties, for spending too much air-time reporting on the protests.

Vucic’s rhetoric continued to escalate as he announced plans for a rally in Belgrade, where he intends to bring all of his supporters to demonstrate. “After every failed colour revolution, there is always a counter-revolution that will restore order in the country,” he told the roaring crowds in Bor. As the president continues to use emotive rhetoric against the protesters and the media, there is little sign of a resolution to the months of protests; instead, intense political polarisation will become the new norm.