Serbia is facing a deep political and institutional crisis as a student-led movement increasingly challenges the rule of President Aleksandar Vučić, said Aleksandar Olenik, a prominent lawyer and vice president of the League of Social Democrats of Vojvodina, in an interview with KDP.mk.
“This is an uprising that transcends the divide between government and opposition,” said Olenik, adding that even citizens who are not politically active have realized that the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) and its leader Vučić represent “a corrupt project that has suspended the state system in all its functions to push forward corrupt ventures, such as EXPO and Putin’s railway, aimed solely at keeping Vučić in power and enriching his circle.”
He said the protests, which began after the collapse of the train station roof in Novi Sad, have exposed the institutional decay and become a symbol of resistance to a regime he says governs through corruption, clientelism, and repression.
Students demand constitutionality and rule of law
Olenik explained that students and their supporters have two sets of demands – formal and essential. The formal ones call for early elections, while the core demands focus on respecting the Constitution, restoring the separation of powers, and ensuring a functioning judiciary and prosecution.
“The key demand is to end Vučić’s absolute rule and return power to constitutional boundaries,” he stressed.
The government’s response – repression and fear
According to Olenik, the authorities have responded with “pure repression” – deploying police force, surveillance, and abuse of security agencies, including the intelligence service BIA. He warned that Serbia is moving toward open authoritarianism in the style of Belarus or Russia.
“Support for Vučić has significantly declined, he no longer has legitimacy, and his only tools left are force and propaganda,” he said.
No return for Vučić
Olenik believes that Vučić will never again regain his former political capital and that Serbia will not return to the state it was in just a year ago.
“Vučić’s fall is inevitable. The only question is how much it will cost us as a society and when it will happen,” he said, adding that the League of Social Democrats of Vojvodina is working to ensure a peaceful transition, both in the streets and within political institutions.
As for the president’s personal fate, Olenik was direct: “He has two options – to face Serbian courts and prosecutors for rampant corruption, political killings, and other crimes he allowed or participated in, or to flee in order to escape justice. The courts await his entire corrupt system, while those not involved in crimes will face lustration.”
A new political scene: reset at the doorstep
Olenik argued that Serbia’s political landscape has already changed. He said the student movement enjoys the broadest support — not just among opposition forces, but also among politically unaffiliated citizens.
“A complete reset is needed. First, elections to formally and then physically remove Vučić from power. The next step is free and fair elections to establish a new political system. That reset has already begun,” he stated.
Personal cost of resistance
Asked whether he feels threatened, Olenik replied: “Any rational person would fear such an authoritarian regime, but today we are protected by the public and the massive turnout in the streets. As long as we have the people with us, we have no reason to fear — neither I, nor the rest of the opposition, nor the students. If the public disappears and we return to darkness, then fear would be justified — but I don’t believe that will happen.”