The European International Studies Association is deeply concerned by the attacks against academic freedom and university autonomy in Serbia.
Since the student-led protests that followed the Novi Sad railway station collapse in November 2024, the Serbian government has systematically targeted university institutions, putting pressure on students, teachers, and professors demanding accountability, the rule of law, and democracy. The UN and the European Parliament have documented the escalation of threats to academic freedom in Serbia.
More recently, the death of a student under unexplained circumstances at the Faculty of Philosophy in Belgrade on 26 March and the university’s call for an independent investigation were met with a police raid on the Rectorate of the University of Belgrade on 31 March, without prior notice and without clear legal justification, leading to clashes with students.
This is only the most recent manifestation of a broader pattern of state pressure on Serbian universities. The EISA stands in solidarity with the students, scholars, and academic community of Serbia. We call on the Serbian authorities to stop their interference with university autonomy, including politically motivated searches, financial coercion of academic institutions, and retaliation against scholars and students exercising their fundamental rights. We support Rector Đokić’s call for an independent investigation into the circumstances of a student’s tragic death.
The EISA calls on its members and on learned societies across Europe to speak out. It commits to monitoring the situation and supporting colleagues whose academic freedom is under threat.
The EISA Governing Board
