Unions, students stand in silence while regime supporters party

An N1 reporter said that the two faces of Serbia stood in and around Nikola Pasic square just down the road from parliament and the presidency building.

Five unions called their supporters and activists to the square at the start of their protest march to the government headquarters, supported by the protesting students.

The regime supporters extended the tent camp that was originally raised in the part outside the presidency in mid-March, expanded to shut down the street in front of parliament several weeks later and expanded again with more white tents and a long row of tables earlier this week along with a row of field toilets. The people at the tent camp set up grills and brought in drinks and a loud sound system which blasted folk music during the 16 Minutes of Silence tribute. The police had a visible presence.

Union officials said May 1 was not a day of celebration but a day to fight for workers’ rights and listed the changes they want made to the labor law and law on strikes.
The unions and students marched to the government headquarters where their roles were reversed – the protest there was organized by the students with the support of the union.