Systemic Repression of Culture in Serbia Under Vučić Regime
Tatjana Rosić Ilić's report outlines the suppression of arts and culture in Serbia under Aleksandar Vučić following the tragic collapse of the Novi Sad railway station canopy in 2024, which resulted in 16 fatalities. On November 22, 2024, student protests erupted, leading to the occupation of the Faculty of Dramatic Arts. These demonstrations spread across the country, turning cultural institutions into centers of opposition. In response, the government cut funding for festivals such as BITEF and FEST, ceased film production calls, and conducted a raid on the Student Cultural Center on July 22, 2025. The Community of Arts and Culture (ZUK), formed in July 2025, tracks these repressive actions. Significant developments include the Lex Specialis enacted on November 7, 2025, and the appropriation of national institutions, with ZUK making an international appeal in May 2026.
Key facts
- Novi Sad railway station canopy collapse killed 16 people in 2024
- Student protests began November 22, 2024, after regime violence against students
- Faculty of Dramatic Arts occupied on November 25, 2024
- BITEF cancelled for first time in 2025; FEST postponed
- Film Center of Serbia halted film production calls for over 18 months
- Police raided Student Cultural Center (SKC) on July 22, 2025, ending blockade
- General Staff Building complex threatened by Lex Specialis for Trump hotel
- Minister of Culture Nikola Selaković indicted on December 15, 2025
- Jared Kushner's Affinity Partners withdrew from hotel project December 15, 2025
- Dragoslav Bokan, far-right paramilitary leader, appointed head of National Theater in Belgrade
- Matica Srpska bicentennial board includes Aleksandar Vučić, no writers or artists
- Serbian Literary Cooperative promoted poetry by convicted war criminal Radovan Karadžić
- EXPO 2027 criticized for lack of transparency; website launched to expose corruption
- ZUK issued international appeal in May 2026
- Museum of Yugoslavia threatened with unlawful acting director appointment in May 2026
Entities
Artists
- Tatjana Rosić Ilić
- Minja Bogavac
- Hana Selimović
- Dobrila Stojnić 'Boba'
- Ivan Negrišorac (Dragan Stanić)
- Radovan Karadžić
- Srdan Golubović
- Nikola Dobrović
- Dubravka Đukanović
- Estela Radonjić Živkov
- Olivera Vučković
- Matija Vukov
- Iva Tanacković
- Aleksa Stanković
- Milica Pekić
- Branislav Jakovljević
- Antje Postema
- Filip Sestan
- Djordje Popović
Institutions
- University of Belgrade
- Faculty of Dramatic Arts
- Belgrade International Theatre Festival (BITEF)
- Belgrade International Film Festival (FEST)
- Sterijino Pozorje
- Serbian National Theater
- Film Center of Serbia
- Student Cultural Center (SKC)
- Community of Arts and Culture (ZUK)
- Matica Srpska (MS)
- Serbian Literary Cooperative (SKZ)
- National Theater in Belgrade
- National Library of Serbia
- Šabac Theater
- Republic Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments
- Belgrade Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments
- Prosecutor's Office for Organized Crime (JTOK)
- Higher Public Prosecutor's Office in Belgrade (VJT)
- Europa Nostra
- ICOMOS
- International Council of Museums (ICOM)
- Museum of Yugoslavia
- Archives of Yugoslavia
- Belgrade Philharmonic
- Terra Center for Fine and Applied Arts
- Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC)
- Serbian Progressive Party (SNS)
- Affinity Partners
- Milenijum Team
- Die Linke
- Bundestag
- Mašina
- SEEcult
- New York Times
- Süddeutsche Zeitung
- N1
- University of Graz
- Singidunum University
- University of Kragujevac
- Faculty of Philology
- Independence Trade Union
- Actors' Union of the National Theater
- Commissioner for the Protection of Equality
Locations
- Novi Sad
- Serbia
- Belgrade
- Šabac
- Vojvodina
- Pest
- Budapest
- Venice
- Italy
- Germany
- Europe
- Western Balkans
- Bosnia
- Kikinda