Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Serbian gun amnesty collects 13,500 weapons, including rocket launcher

Serbian gun amnesty collects 13,500 weapons, including rocket launcher

Horror and anger at two recent mass shootings has put Serbia's populist government under pressure to change the political climate

Serbian authorities on Sunday displayed many of around 13,500 weapons they say people have been handed over since this month's mass shootings, including hand grenades, automatic weapons, and anti-tank rocket launchers.

The authorities have declared a one-month amnesty period for citizens to hand over unregistered weapons or face prison sentences as part of a crackdown on guns following the two mass shootings this month that left 17 people dead, many of them children.

Populist President Aleksandar Vučić accompanied top police officials on Sunday for the weapons' display near the town of Smederevo, some 50 kilometres south of Belgrade.

According to Vučić, approximately half of the weapons collected were illegal while the other half were registered weapons that citizens nonetheless handed over. He added the weapons will go to Serbia's arms and ammunitions factories for potential use by the armed forces.

A rally against gun violence in Belgrade, Serbia


“After June 8, the state will respond with repressive measures and punishments will be very strict,” he said of the post-amnesty period. “What does anyone need an automatic weapon for? Or all these guns?”

Serbia is estimated to be among the top countries in Europe in guns per capita. Many are left over from the wars of the 1990s and held illegally.

Other anti-gun measures are to include stricter controls of gun owners and shooting ranges.

Authorities launched the gun crackdown after a 13-year-old boy on May 3 took his father's gun and opened fire on his fellow-students in an elementary school in central Belgrade. A day later, a 20-year-old used an automatic weapon to shoot randomly in a rural area south of Belgrade.

The two mass shooting left 17 people dead and 21 wounded, stunning the nation and triggering calls for change in a country that has been through decades of turmoil and crises.


Crackdown and pushback


Tens of thousands of people have rallied in two protest marches in Belgrade since the shootings, demanding the resignations of government ministers and a ban on television stations that promote violent content and host war criminals and crime figures.

Vučić on Sunday rejected opposition calls for the resignation of Interior Minister Bratislav Gašić, who was also present at Sunday's weapons display. But the president suggested that the government might resign and that he will announce an early election at a rally he has planned for May 26 in Belgrade.

“We have no intention of replacing Gašić, who is doing a great job," said Vučić. “What have police done wrong?”

Opposition politicians have accused Vučić's populist authorities of fuelling violence and hate speech against critics, spreading propaganda on mainstream media and imposing autocratic rule in all institutions, which they say stokes divisions in society.

On Friday, the protesters in Belgrade blocked a key bridge and motorway in the capital to press their demands. Protests also have been held in other Serbian cities and towns, in an outpouring of grief and anger over the shootings and the populist authorities.

Vučić has described the bridge blockade as harassment, and he and other officials and media under his control have sought to downplay the size of the protest.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Budapest Post
Close
0:00
0:00
Olaf Scholz Assures: No Cuts to German Welfare State Amid Budget Crisis
Greece and Turkey Agree to Reboot Relations After Landmark Talks in Athens
Greece and Turkey Agree to Reboot Relations After Landmark Talks in Athens
No. 10 Advised: Rwanda Plan Has '50% at Best' Chance of Success Before Election
Significant Shift: UK Voters Express Desire for Closer Relationship with EU Since Brexit
Sadiq Khan Appeals to Progressives for Support Amidst Concerns Over New Voting System
Sunak Faces Further Scrutiny in Covid Inquiry as Pranksters Claim Access to His Former Phone Number
NHS Issues Apology for Sending Incorrect Body for Family Cremation
Labour Intensifies Condemnation of Gaza Violence
Senior doctors' significant pay increase creates tension within NHS
Two distinct investigations into the Covid pandemic are underway in the UK, each adopting a contrasting approach
Stephen Fry Returns to Work Just Three Months After Stage Fall
Laura Kuenssberg Reports: Tory Party Divisions and Disputes Heighten Pressure on Sunak
UK's Generation X Skeptical About Retirement Prospects
EU Fiscal Agreement Sparks Disagreement Between France and Germany Over Investment Expenditure
EU Fiscal Agreement Sparks Disagreement Between France and Germany Over Investment Expenditure
UK Parliamentary Committee Criticizes Lackluster Post-Brexit Financial Reforms
UK Parliamentary Committee Criticizes Lackluster Post-Brexit Financial Reforms
US, UK, Canada Impose Sanctions on Dozens on Human Rights Anniversary The US, UK, and Canada have collectively imposed sanctions on dozens of individuals and entities for human rights abuses to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
US, UK, Canada Impose Sanctions on Dozens on Human Rights Anniversary The US, UK, and Canada have collectively imposed sanctions on dozens of individuals and entities for human rights abuses to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
"New Beginnings: Greece and Turkey Agree to Repair Relations
"New Beginnings: Greece and Turkey Agree to Repair Relations
Finland's Supreme Court Prevents Extradition of Russian Terrorism Suspect to Ukraine
Finland's Supreme Court Prevents Extradition of Russian Terrorism Suspect to Ukraine
UK Proposes Streamlined Financial Advice to Reduce Costs for Consumers
UK's Labour Party Conducts Review of Financial Services to Boost City's Growth Potential
London City Hall Condemns Blast Targeting Clean Air Zone Camera
Controversy Surrounds President Macron's Hanukkah Candle Lighting Ceremony at Elysée Palace
Venezuela Steps Up Claim on Guyana's Essequibo Region
Spain's First AI Model Earns Up to $10,000 Monthly
German Cabinet Works to Address 'No-Debt' Crisis After Court Outlaws Budget
Former President Restricted from Leaving Ukraine Amid Alleged Plan to Meet Hungary's Viktor Orban
Spain soccer kiss: Furore grows as prosecutors launch probe against federation chief
Paper straws found to contain long-lasting and potentially toxic chemicals - study
FTX's Bankman-Fried headed for jail after judge revokes bail
Blackrock gets half a trillion dollar deal to rebuild Ukraine
Steve Jobs' Son Launches Venture Capital Firm With $200 Million For Cancer Treatments
Greek PM offers tourists affected by wildfires a free stay in Rhodes next year.
Israel: Unprecedented Civil Disobedience Looms as IDF Reservists Protest Judiciary Reform
Google reshuffles Assistant unit, lays off some staffers, to 'supercharge' products with A.I.
End of Viagra? FDA approved a gel against erectile dysfunction
UK sanctions Russians judges over dual British national Kara-Murza's trial
US restricts visa-free travel for Hungarian passport holders because of security concerns
America's First New Nuclear Reactor in Nearly Seven Years Begins Operations
Southeast Asia moves closer to economic unity with new regional payments system
Political leader from South Africa, Julius Malema, led violent racist chants at a massive rally on Saturday
Today Hunter Biden’s best friend and business associate, Devon Archer, testified that Joe Biden met in Georgetown with Russian Moscow Mayor's Wife Yelena Baturina who later paid Hunter Biden $3.5 million in so called “consulting fees”
How “peacekeepers” at the UN spend our American tax dollars.
Singapore Carries Out First Execution of a Woman in Two Decades Amid Capital Punishment Debate
Spanish Citizenship Granted to Iranian chess player who removed hijab
×