Protests Against Mass Shootings in Serbia While U.S. Republicans Support Gun Violence!

Huge crowds protest Serbia mass shootings for fourth week calling for President Aleksandar Vucic to step down. Today, he resigned as head of his party.

In the first attack, on May 3, a teenage boy killed nine pupils and a security guard in Belgrade. It was the first school mass shooting in Serbia.

A day later a 21-year-old man killed eight people outside the city.

The anti-government protesters, many of whom carried flowers and pictures of the slain children on Saturday, were angry at the governing SNS over what they say is a culture of violence fanned by the government and the media outlets they control.

Held under the banner “Serbia against violence” and organised by opposition parties, the protests have culminated into some of the largest rallies in the country since widespread demonstrations triggered the fall of former President Slobodan Milosevic more than two decades ago.

The crowds on Saturday braved heavy rain and wind in Belgrade as they filled the streets around a compound housing the state broadcaster RTS.

The protesters want the government to revoke the broadcasting licences of television channels promoting violent content and a ban on pro-government newspapers that stir tensions by targeting political dissidents.

They also called for Interior Minister Bratislav Gasic and the director of Serbia’s security agency, Aleksandar Vulin, to resign.

“If they don’t fulfil [the demands] we are not leaving from here,” said Milica Tomic, a Belgrade resident. “We will be here if it need be, every day, every week, whenever.”

Al Jazeera’s Bernard Smith, reporting from Belgrade, said protesters blamed the government for encouraging a “culture of violence”.

“They also say the government is not doing enough to tackle corruption and that it’s drifting into an authoritarian direction,” he added."
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/5/27/serbias-vucic-steps-down-as-head-of-ruling-party

Meanwhile, Republicans pass legislation to protect gun manufacturers against lawsuits from murdered elementary children's families. How messed up is that?