The resignation of Serbian Prime Minister Milos Vucevic may not be enough to end student protests that have rocked the Balkan country since a disaster at a railway station killed 15 people in November.
This is despite the fact that Vucevic's resignation was among the protesters' initial demands. Their position has developed over months of protests that began when a concrete canopy collapsed at a station in the northern city of Novi Sad.
At first, the protesters called for both Vucevic and the mayor of Novi Sad, Milan Djuric, to go. Djuric also resigned from his position on January 28.
The resignations come following remarks by President Aleksandar Vucic on January 27, saying that all the students' demands will be met. Vucic appeared to be trying to defuse a situation where protests were growing nationwide.
Overnight, protesters were supported by farmers using tractors to mount a blockade of the main roads through the capital, Belgrade. Anger about the deaths has grown into wider grievances.
The protesters have said they're not interested in politics and do not see resignations as the core issue. Instead, they say they want Serbian institutions to work as they should.
"We would love to live in a country where every institution simply does its job independently, without corruption or external pressure," university student Jana Lomic told RFE/RL at one of the overnight blockades.
Many students camped out in tents.
They have the support of Serbia's opposition parties. It was announced this week that the government would submit to a confidence vote in parliament on January 29. The opposition said this was an old demand and that they supported the students' positions.
There are four major demands: The release of all documents covering the reconstruction of the station in Novi Sad amid concerns over corruption, dropping charges against students arrested during the initial protests, indictments against people who assaulted protesting students, and a 20 percent increase in government funding for state-run universities.
The government approved the 20 percent rise in its 2025 budget in December.
Vucic said all documents relating to the reconstruction of the railway station had been made public. But he has claimed this before and it is disputed by some protesters.
"We are always open to some form of negotiation and cooperation, but we don't want anyone to play games with us, and it is clear that this has been happening for two months," said Nikola Mutavdzic, a student at the Faculty of Law, who participated in the 24-hour traffic blockade in Belgrade on January 27.
Vucic also said charges against protesters would be dropped and that 37 individuals faced criminal proceedings for attacks on students. It's unclear whether all charges will be dropped, and if all alleged assaulters will be charged.
The student movement has no clear leaders. They take their decisions in votes.
It's also not clear what, if anything, will happen in parliament on January 29. A confidence vote when the prime minister has already resigned feels like an irrelevance that is also unlikely to calm public anger.
"With the resignation of the prime minister, the entire cabinet falls, so practically speaking, the entire government is resigning," Vucevic said on January 28.
The government is due to meet on the evening of January 28. Under the Serbian Constitution, it will remain in office for up to 30 days until a new government is approved by parliament.
If this does not happen, Vucic must call new parliamentary elections. Opposition parties have called for an interim government to be formed, something that is opposed by Vucic's ruling Serbian Progressive Party.
