loading . . . “Power lies in knowledge”: Belgrade academics accuse authorities of assault on universities Serbia’s academic community has accused the authorities of launching an unprecedented attack on universities, with the Rector of the University of Belgrade telling a mass student protest that “power does not lie in malice – power lies in knowledge”.
Addressing thousands gathered at Students’ Square, Rector Vladan Đokić said that history shows no previous government had acted “so arrogantly and maliciously towards the academic community, simply because it did not want to remain silent”, EUalive’s partner BETA reports .
“With malice and perversity, it strikes at the university, at those devoted to education, at the youth and at the future of Serbia, which is not theirs,” Đokić said. He added that the authorities are targeting “the youngest and the most educated” because “they refuse to keep quiet”.
He listed what he described as mounting pressure on academia, including police entering faculties and universities, dismissals of professors, economic pressure, and the introduction of the SPIRI system (a state-run centralised payment system that places universities’ finances under direct government control) , which critics say strips higher-education institutions of financial autonomy. He also cited media pressure and the targeting of students and professors by pro-government outlets and senior officials.
“To the force and arrogance of this regime, we respond with all the force of education,” Đokić said, calling for a change in the state’s approach to education and reforms to make the system more accessible across Serbia, particularly higher education. Universities, he argued, “are not needed by those in power”, urging the academic community to unite in defending university autonomy and academic freedoms, and calling on the authorities to ensure the autonomy of universities guaranteed by law and to stop violations of the constitution and human rights in public life.
“Education is not for sale”
Katarina Šćepanović, a professor at the Faculty of Philology and member of the Forum of Belgrade Gymnasiums union, said reprisals against educators are still ongoing, with suspensions and dismissals continuing.
“This is punishment for all of us who were disobedient because a year ago we stood in defence of education,” she said.
Referring to Saint Sava, a central figure in Serbian education and culture, Šćepanović added that knowledge that does not serve the good of others “means nothing”, and that “education has no price and belongs to everyone”.
“Education is not for sale, just like clean air, water and land, because who dares to sell what they did not themselves acquire?” she asked. Actor Anita Mančić addressed young people through a performance, apologising for the messages older generations had passed on.
“We taught you to step aside, not to stand out, to be quiet, thinking we were protecting you, but in fact we were bending your spine, telling you that it had to be that way. But it didn’t, it never had to,” she said.
She urged them to “learn, ask, doubt, stay when everyone leaves, speak when everyone is silent, and when laws fail, be justice”.
“Be human. In the name of those of us who were too late, to you who still have time – be better than us, because the world is still waiting for you,” Mančić said.
Students reject a system of control
Students and pupils said they are witnessing direct political control over education. Maša Stojanović, a pupil at Fifth Belgrade Gymnasium, said schools are being placed under imposed administrations “because absolute control comes first, not us students”.
“We are young, but we are aware of what is happening before our eyes, what is happening to our teachers and our parents,” she said, adding that “a party membership card is more important than a diploma” and that young people refuse to grow up in such a system.
Maja Zorić, a student at the Teacher Training Faculty, said education in Serbia is being “systematically pushed aside and treated as a cost that should be reduced to a minimum”.
“Such a policy has consequences, and we are already living those consequences today,” she said, arguing that for 13 years Serbia has followed a model based on cheap labour while neglecting universities. “This kind of policy leaves society without development and without a future.”
“That is why we are here today to defend education, the university, and to say that the future of a country begins precisely in the classroom,” Zorić said.
The protest, held under the slogan “Knowledge is Power”, brought together several thousand students and citizens, who marched through central Belgrade with faculty flags and icons of Saint Sava. Organisers announced further demonstrations, signalling that the dispute over academic freedom may escalate into a broader political challenge.
Protesters hold a banner reading ‘Knowledge is power’ during a student demonstration in Belgrade, Serbia, 27 January 2026. Students are rallying to demand core changes to educational reforms and early elections. The demonstrations are part of a wave of civil unrest that began following the fatal canopy collapse at the Novi Sad railway station in late 2024, with protesters calling for increased accountability and social justice. EPA/ANDREJ CUKIC https://eualive.net/power-lies-in-knowledge-belgrade-academics-accuse-authorities-of-assault-on-universities/
