In a bold show of defiance against months of mounting public pressure, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic declared that “the color revolution is over” during a mass rally of his supporters in Belgrade on April 11 and 12. Tens of thousands of demonstrators were bussed in from across the country to show loyalty to Vucic and his Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), as Serbia remains gripped by student-led protests and deepening political unrest.

The rally, staged outside the parliament building in the capital, was designed as a high-profile counter-move to the massive March 15 anti-government protest, which drew over 100,000 participants-the largest such gathering in Serbia in recent decades. That protest, and the many smaller ones that preceded it, stemmed from the deadly collapse of a concrete canopy at the Novi Sad railway station in November 2024, a disaster that killed 16 people and sparked national outrage.

What began as grief and anger over the tragedy soon escalated into a wave of protests accusing the government of corruption, negligence, and systemic rot. Students, joined by educators, farmers, and civic organizations, quickly became the engine of a growing movement demanding government accountability and sweeping reform. Critics have pointed to lax building codes, political impunity, and opaque procurement practices as symptoms of deeper institutional decay under Vucic’s 12-year rule-first as prime minister and now as president.

But rather than concede to any criticism, Vucic has chosen to escalate the political conflict. On........

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