Student rejects presidential pardon: Prosecutor’s office should have cleared us

“This matter should have been resolved by the prosecutor's office that was pursuing these cases against me and others,” Mladenovic told N1.

On Tuesday, Vucic pardoned 13 people, including six university students.

Speaking to N1’s Newsnight show about the ongoing student protests and the students’ march to Novi Sad, Mladenovic said he was proud of his generation’s impact.

“We have awakened certain human values in our society that we feared had been lost,” he said, adding that the solidarity shown throughout the students’ struggle for social progress has been remarkable.

Mladenovic emphasized that the students’ demand for dropping the charges was technically met, but that the method was not what protesters had sought.

“As one of the 13 pardoned individuals, I can say the demand was addressed, but not as requested. None of us asked for presidential mercy,” he explained.

“I rejected the pardon because I wanted to prove my innocence in judicial proceedings. The president’s action reduces this to an act of charity. I was accused of participating in the November 5 riots in Novi Sad during the city’s largest protest, but no evidence was ever publicly presented to support these charges,” Mladenovic told N1.