Journal De Bruxelles - Chaos as Serbia opposition set off flares in parliament to back protests

Footage shared online showed opposition members holding colourful flares and throwing what appeared to be smoke canisters as the opening spring session began.

A live video feed showed parliamentary speaker Ana Brnabic lambasting the opposition's protest and the alleged use of "tear gas" in the assembly.

"Your colour revolution has failed, and this country will live, this country will work and this country will continue to win," she told them, referring to pro-western revolts that shook post-Soviet states.

Serbia has been rocked for months by student-led anti-corruption protests after the deadly collapse of a train station roof last year that killed 15 people.

The movement has put increasing pressure on the Serbian government and President Aleksandar Vucic, spurring the resignation of the prime minister in January and other high-ranking officials.

Tuesday's session was the first since Prime Minister Milos Vucevic stepped down and MP were set to formalise his resignation.

They were also to debate a new higher education bill that would slash tuition fees for university students -- a key demand of the protesters.

But amid chaotic scenes, opposition members launched their protest and threw eggs and water at members of the ruling Serbian Progressive Party.

"Do you defend students' demands like this?" said speaker Brnabic during the session.

Opposition lawmakers also waved Serbian flags and held signs saying "Your hands are bloody" and "Fulfil the students' demands!"

- Investigation -

The speaker later said that multiple MPs were injured during the incident.

Serbia's Health Minister Zlatibor Loncar said that one lawmaker was taken to an intensive care unit after suffering a stroke.

Hours after the melee another fracas erupted in the parliamentary chamber when a fire extinguisher was discharged.

Belgrade's public prosecutor's office said it had ordered police "to establish the relevant facts and gather all available evidence to identify the individuals who brought and used pyrotechnic devices" and find out who else threw objects during the session.

Interior Minister Ivica Dacic later added that legislators who engaged in violence would not be protected by legal immunity.

"Anyone who participated in the incident ... will be held accountable for their actions in line with the law. We will never tolerate violence," said the minister.

- Months of protests -

The fatal collapse of a railway station roof in the city of Novi Sad in November came after extensive renovations to the building.

It ignited long-simmering anger in the country over corruption and the alleged lack of oversight for construction and development projects.

Vucic and other government officials have swung between calling for talks and firing off allegations that the demonstrators are being backed by foreign powers.

To quell the protests, the government has sought to meet several of the student organisers' demands.

Those steps have included releasing a raft of documents related to the renovations at the station; pardoning protesters arrested at rallies; boosting funding for higher education and launching criminal proceedings against suspects accused of attacking demonstrators.

Outside parliament, student protesters also rallied as the session opened, where they held 15 minutes of silence in tribute to the victims of the Novi Sad tragedy.

University students have emerged as the leaders of the protest movement and have been blockading campuses across the country for weeks.

But the student protesters have refrained from making a formal alliance with Serbia's fractured political opposition.

The chaotic scenes in parliament come after thousands of demonstrators flocked to the southern city of Nis over the weekend, during the latest in a series of mass demonstrations.

Protesters have called for another large rally to be held in the capital Belgrade on March 15.

I.Servais--JdB