President Vučić pardons 12 Novi Sad activists before resignation — Balkan Insight

Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić said he had pardoned 12 anti-government activists from Novi Sad who are on trial for allegedly preparing actions against the constitutional order and the country’s security. He announced the decision in Belgrade before submitting his resignation and ahead of elections scheduled for next month.

As Balkan Insight reports, Vučić pardoned 49 people in total. According to him, 23 of them were linked to events of the past year and a half, including mass student protests. In addition to the 12 activists, the president also pardoned 11 people whom he described as government supporters and who took part in incidents against participants in protest blockades.

Charges against the activists

The 12 activists are linked to the opposition Free Citizens Movement and the Students Against Authoritarian Rule group. They are accused of preparing actions against Serbia’s constitutional order and security. The charges emerged after a recording of a meeting involving the defendants before a rally in March 2025, which, according to the outlet, became the largest in Serbia’s history.

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Six defendants spent more than seven months in custody and under house arrest before being released so they could defend themselves while at liberty. The other six were outside Serbia at the time of the arrests and remained abroad; proceedings against them were conducted in absentia.

Vučić’s position and an activist’s reaction

Vučić called the pardons an “act of mercy” in view of the activists’ age, while stating that the decision does not mean they are innocent. According to him, he made the decision against the advice of the security services. The president also said that, in his view, the activists could have been sentenced to several years in prison.

Activist Dorotea Antić, who is abroad, told the outlet that the group did not seek to end the case through a presidential pardon. She maintains that the case was fabricated and politically motivated from the outset. Antić added that those involved in the case are awaiting official court notifications on the termination of proceedings, and that she herself plans to remain outside Serbia as long as Vučić remains in power.