Local opposition leader arrested in northern Serbia

NEWS 01.03.202210:56
Hapšenje
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A local opposition leader was reported to have been arrested in northern Serbia following an altercation with the head of the local branch of the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS).

The police arrested Vukasin Bacina who heads a local civic group in the Vojvodina hamlet of Secanj after he confronted the local SNS branch chief Goran Djakovic who was trying to prevent the registration of the civic group for the coming local elections.

The Vukasin Bacina – A Better Secanj Municipality group said that its leader was taken to the police station in the city of Zrenjanin where he will be held for 48 hours pending possible charges. The group’s statement said that they have been under attack by the SNS for days in an attempt to prevent them from registering for the elections. “The attacks on Bacina along with pressure on his associates began as soon as the local elections were called,” it said.

The statement recalled that the attacks on Bacina and his group began after the SNS lost the elections for community councils last year.

The group’s registration for the April 3 local elections was confirmed at the last moment by the local election commission.