Thousands protest in Serbia against corruption

BELGRADE: Thousands of Serbians protested in the capital Belgrade on Sunday against corruption and demanding justice for those killed in a train station roof collapse.

The demonstrations have been ongoing for two months since a roof in a train station in the northern city of Novi Sad, which had recently undergone restoration work, collapsed on November 1 and killed 15 people.

From 4:00 pm (1500 GMT), thousands of people converged on central Belgrade blowing whistles and wearing badges featuring a bloody hand -- the protest movement's symbol.

The demonstrations in the country of 6.8 million people have been initiated by students who have blocked universities.

Protesters blame the accident on corruption and inadequate oversight of construction projects.

"We're here to demand some changes, to demand justice," said protester Milena Cicovic, 34, adding that the aim was to "prevent this country from going (further) down the road of corruption".

More than a dozen people have been charged in connection with the tragedy, including former transport minister Goran Vesic, who resigned days after the incident.

But protesters are demanding greater transparency in the investigations and into the restoration contracts at the train station, which were signed with Chinese, French and Hungarian companies.