RECTOR ĐOKIĆ: “I am certain that the Student List will win the largest number of votes!” (VIDEO)

Appearing on the pre-election program “Half an Hour with Demostat,” Prof. Dr. Vladan Đokić gave his full support to the Student List, assessing that the movement had taken over from fragmented political parties. He stressed that the emergence of students as a new political force represents a historic opportunity and expressed his conviction that they would win the largest number of votes in the election.

The rector of the University of Belgrade, Vladan Đokić, was not surprised when the presence of the “Pegasus” spyware was discovered on his phone, as he has been under surveillance for more than a year and a half, he explained to Demostat.

They follow him by car and on foot, photograph him, and listen in on his conversations…

“This is a continuation of the abuse of power against those who think differently, an attempt to put pressure on people who have opinions on certain public issues. What is different in this case is the fact that it is not just me who is affected, but all my contacts. This threatens not only my privacy and security, but also those of my family, friends, colleagues, and everyone I communicate with in my capacity as rector of the University,” the rector said during his appearance on the pre-election program “Half an Hour with Demostat.”

He stressed that this represents a higher level of intrusion into privacy and an unlawful act.

“It was carried out by the state or representatives of certain institutions, because only states can possess this kind of software. This is certainly something that requires greater attention from both our own and the international public, and I will respond accordingly,” he said.

Asked by host Zoran Panović about the difference between his role as rector and his public political and social views, given that he has, in a certain way, become the face of the major student and social uprising, Đokić said that the current government treats the university as its political rival.

“Given that this movement is unique, that it has no leader and that the students started out without any kind of leader, the authorities had to focus on a person whom they could present as the representative of the student movement. They focused on me because I head the largest and most important university in our country, which, through its members, has largely supported the initial student demands and the movement as a whole,” he explained.

That is the essence and the motive, he explained, emphasizing that he is not a politician, but first and foremost a professor at the Faculty of Architecture and currently the rector of a university whose duty, alongside teaching professional skills, is to teach students to think critically and form their own opinions about developments in society.

Commenting on the terms “anarchists, Hamas supporters, Ustaše, terrorists, or Satanists” used by the current authorities to describe students, Rector Đokić recalled a government minister who said that the police had the right to kill students, another who told parents not to send their children to state universities in Serbia because they would return in coffins, and a former president who called professors parasites.

“It is an illogical case, unprecedented anywhere in the world, for representatives of the authorities to treat the most educated and the youngest adult segment of the population this way. However, the enrollment process went well, and the faculties of the University of Belgrade and other universities remain popular despite these attacks and the challenges coming from government representatives. According to surveys, I think CRTA conducted one, the university enjoyed more trust than the Church, the military, or the police, not to mention the president and political parties,” Đokić said.

He pointed out that this year, after seven to eight years of a slight decline, the University of Belgrade has recorded an increase in student enrollment, a figure that contradicts what the minister has been saying.

“If the same government remains in power, the outlook for education is not good. We have various threats that have already been made against universities and university professors, which does not mean that we will stop fighting for university autonomy. But it will be much harder,” he said.

He confirmed that the fact that he did not become angry after learning that he was not included on the Student List represents a kind of precedent in Serbian political culture, but said that he is not a politician.

“This is a kind of new democratic culture. What is more important? Whether I am on the list, or whether the list wins? I think anyone who is reasonable knows the answer to that question. On the other hand, this culture of commitment to the movement is not a culture of loyalty to a party, nor is it political. It has several layers, and that is what we are fighting for,” Rector Đokić explained.

During the podcast, he also provided more details about the spyware installed on his phone and spoke about the threatened autonomy of universities, academic freedom, and the organization of the student movement, which has no precedent in history.

He shared his experiences with Đuro Macut’s government and the education minister, the conditions under which the authorities intend to bring foreign universities to Serbia, and the differences in the quality of public and private higher education in Serbia and around the world.

The discussion also covered the police raid on the Rectorate, the speech he delivered from its window that established him as a leader, the Shanghai Ranking, and the students’ pre-election campaign appearance. He urged the academic community, students, and professors to put aside personal and individual interests during this election race and instead focus on what benefits society.

His message to citizens was that this is neither his fight nor the students’ fight alone, but a struggle for everyone, and that every vote matters.

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