The Schools of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering

The students of the Schools of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering were falsely informed that student assemblies were to take place today at these schools. Neither the student protest leadership nor the professors called for the meeting nor did they inform Radio Index which broadcasted the news. The protest leadership used the opportunity to inform the gathered students of the protest events and future programs. At the end of the meeting it was announced that the students of these two schools would meet and go to the Belgrade Zoo in order to search for the Chancellor, since he was nowhere to be found. We then walked down Bulevar Revolucije, Takovska to Ivo Lola Ribar where Grandma Olga awaited, ready as always. From there the 300 enthusiastic students went down Makedonska, Braca Jugovic and Zmaj od Nocaja to the Kalemegdan Park where the city zoo is located. The zoo manager, Vuk Bojovic had already agreed to let us in for free - not even our IDs were checked. The students walked in an orderly fashion through the zoo looking for the Chancellor. Buffalos, kangaroos, deer, monkeys and all different animals were asked whether they had seen Dragutin Velickovic, but none of them could give us an answer. The tour was finished, and the expedition concluded that the Chancellor was not in the city zoo after all. On the way out, the group stopped in front of the administration building where Vuk Bojovic addressed us. He told us that there was no reason to look for the Chancellor, since he personally and his role were non existent, but that if he did appear at the zoo, there would be a space for him, somewhere. The students then returned to the Plato in order to meet with the rest of the students of the Belgrade University for the 90th protest gathering of the Student Protest '96/97 against the electoral manipulations.

The Plato

The gathering of the students of the Belgrade University started at noon as usual, even though in the recent days the program hasn't started until 11 o'clock. The first speech was given by the Dean of the School of Political Sciences, Vukasin Pavlovic, who said that the Chancellor has not the credibility to make demands regarding his resignation. The following guest was Srbijanka Turajlic, professor at the School of Electrical Engineering, who reminded the students of the belated defeat of the '68 protest and the mistakes which her generation had made at the time - giving in to compromises. The final address was by Iris Honderdos, an artist from Holland who opened an her exhibit in the hall of the School of Philosophy - her way of expressing her support of the Student Protest. An article by Mirjana Markovic, the director of the Yugoslav Left and wife of Slobodan Milosevic, regarding independent media.

The "Walk"

The walk started from the Plato a little later than usual due to the extremely unpleasant weather (the was sleet and wind). The procession walked down Kolarceva and Srpskih Vladara and into Kneza Milosa. The students visited their former teachers at the corner of Kneza Milosa and Nemanjina, where they are striking for late salaries and higher wages. From there the students walked to Slavija, where another incident took place; a white VW Golf ran into the student procession. The driver tried to confront the students but the student security managed to prevent a larger incident. A traffic police officer stood by, but let the student security handle the situation. The column returned to the Plato where the gathering for the day ended, but the protest will continue tomorrow at noon, at the same place.