As part of the program Regional Initiative for combating disinformation “Western Balkans Combatting disinformation Center: Exposing malicious influences through fact-checking and Analytical Journalism“, we present you a new analysis of fake news and disinformation narratives.
Here’s who pedaled to Strasbourg on behalf of the student protesters and was received by MEPs (VIDEO)
Mass student-civil protests in Serbia have been ongoing for over five months. The country is experiencing one of the most severe political crises in decades, and the protests have created unprecedented pressure on the current government.
As part of a campaign to “raise awareness” and draw attention to the protests in Serbia and the demands aimed at combating corruption and the capture of institutions, students and citizens expanded their activities beyond Serbia. In the first half of April, a bicycle ride from Novi Sad to Strasbourg, one of the seats of European institutions, was organized.
The event, officially called the “Tour to Strasbourg,” lasted from April 3 to April 15. Several dozen students and citizens cycled more than 1,400 kilometers, riding through Hungary, Slovakia, Austria, Germany, and France. In numerous European cities, they were welcomed by members of the Serbian diaspora, and some large support gatherings were also attended by local and European officials.
In Strasbourg, the students met with Members of the European Parliament as well as officials from the Council of Europe. Pro-government media in Serbia followed the “Tour to Strasbourg” with persistently negative coverage and attempts to discredit it.
In the days following the completion of the bike tour, scandalous information emerged in the domestic public about the online behavior of one of the participants. According to published evidence, a student from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering in Belgrade had frequently liked highly repugnant and unacceptable social media posts that trivialized or even justified violence against women. He had also posted inappropriate racist comments, suggesting justification for violence against children “of a different skin color.”
The actions of this student are completely unacceptable and deserve strong condemnation. However, pro-government media attempted to use this individual to once again stigmatize the entire student movement. Generalizations and attempts to equate this one student with all student groups involved in organizing blockades and protests are evident in reports by pro-government media. An illustrative example is the article from Večernje novosti titled, “Here’s who pedaled to Strasbourg on behalf of the student protesters and was received by MEPs.”
Večernje novosti emphasized that “the student from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering in Belgrade supposedly biked to Strasbourg, and there he was received by MEPs on behalf of the protesters,” adding in their article that “this wouldn’t be strange if he didn’t advocate for killing brown and black children, as well as for the rape of women and brutal violence against them.”
The article combines this generalization—criticizing the entire student movement for the actions of an individual—with an anti-EU sentiment, claiming that “it seems MEPs uphold the most monstrous values that the EU allegedly fights against.”
This trend of accusations by pro-government media against the student movement in general, especially in light of this incident, fits into a broader negative campaign that has been ongoing for months. However, it is important to note that students from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and other faculties distanced themselves and condemned the unacceptable behavior of their peer, which had not been known to te public prior to or during the bike tour to Strasbourg.
Author: Igor Mirosavljević
