A Viral Discontent

Students in Bosnia and Montenegro took to the streets this week to protest against government negligence and corruption, demanding accountability for recent tragedies that have claimed dozens of lives, the Associated Press reported.

Monday’s demonstrations – which mirror ongoing student-led protests in Serbia – highlighted growing frustration in the two Balkan countries over government mismanagement and the lack of transparency, with calls for political change gaining momentum across the region.

In the Bosnian capital Sarajevo, hundreds of students demonstrated the government’s failure to take responsibility for the deaths of 29 people in October, when heavy rains triggered a landslide from an illegally built quarry in the southern village of Donja Jablanica.

Authorities have yet to launch a probe into the disaster and have been slow at distributing much of the foreign aid pledged for reconstruction. Demonstrators carried banners reading “Crime without punishment” and chanted “We won’t stop!” demanding criminal charges against those responsible, Reuters added.

Meanwhile, students in neighboring Montenegro are calling for the removal of top security officials after two mass shootings in the past three years left 23 people dead, including children.

A New Year’s Day shooting this year claimed 13 lives, prompting public outrage over the government’s failure to act after a similar shooting in 2022 killed 10 people.

Protesters have staged daily silent blockades lasting 23 minutes – one minute for each victim – echoing the 15-minute silences held in Serbia to commemorate the victims of the Novi Sad railway station collapse on Nov. 1.

The student-led protests have been inspired by Serbia’s ongoing demonstrations, where anger at government corruption in infrastructure projects has fueled demands for change.

All three countries are former Yugoslavian republics that are seeking to join the European Union. However, they have been slow in passing the required reforms to join the bloc.