“Due to endangerment of public order and the obstruction of traffic, which resulted in a dangerous situation, you are being arrested; please come with me and follow my orders,” a police officer explained the reasons for his arrest to rapper Zlatan Čordić – Zlatko. At Tuesday’s protest, the police were also forced to use the water cannon. They also disbanded the rally and called on everyone to leave the area of the centre of Ljubljana peacefully and follow the instructions and orders of the police. Despite their clear instructions, the protesters moved from the centre to Tržaška Road, walking all the way to Rožna dolina, through Tivoli Park, back towards the centre of Ljubljana.
At Tuesday’s protest of the anti-vaxxers, the police officers arrested the provocative rapped Zlatan Čordić – Zlatko on Wolf Stree in Ljubljana, as he led a group of protesters through the centre of the town after the police had already told the attendees that the protest had been disbanded and they should all peacefully leave the centre. Čordić was arrested due to endangering public order and obstructing traffic, thus creating a dangerous situation. When he was arrested, Čordić wanted the police officers to explain to him why they were arresting him.
They surrounded one of the foreign delegations
President of the Resni.ca party (the Truth), Zoran Stevanović, who has been calling for people to join him at the protests in recent weeks, reiterated his demands on Tuesday – including the suspension of government measures adopted to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, and his demand for early elections to be called as soon as possible. He then escaped from the Republic Square but was allegedly arrested in Šiška; however, the police have not yet confirmed the allegations. After the introductory speeches on Republic Square, the protesters made their way through the streets of Ljubljana. Initially, they headed towards Congress Square, where, according to the web portal 24ur.com, one of the delegations of the European Union Summit in Brdo pri Kranju was stuck. When the protesters surrounded the delegation, the cars began to retreat along Slovenska Street.
The police had to use tear gas and water cannon at around 5 p.m. near the store Nama on Slovenska Street, and after that, the protesters moved to other parts of the city. They also blocked the Tržaška Road in Vič and moved across Rožna dolina past Tivoli Park, back to the centre of Ljubljana. They left quite a mess behind, and according to the data collected so far, two of the protesters were injured.
Minister of the Interior, Aleš Hojs, already explained on the show Tema dneva (Topic of the Day) on Nova24TV a couple of days ago that the police will no longer allow riots and will be active in trying to prevent them this time. He believes that the people who attend these rallies are thugs who are terrorising a good part of the capital. “This is not happening in other parts of Slovenia, and therefore, the rest of the country expects that things in Ljubljana will soon be regulated and will continue within the legal framework.”
After the protest, Minister Hojs thanked the police for preventing violence and vandalism on the streets of Ljubljana. The “peaceful” protests, which, according to him, began even before the new government was formed, and continued with Friday’s cycling protests, once again showed their true face. Minister Hojs also commented on Čordić’s arrest on Twitter, writing: “Zlatan Čordić, a regular participant in Friday’s protests, was one of the key individuals who violated public order on today’s protests, disregarded the calls and orders of the police, and was most likely also a perpetrator of criminal offences.”
Sara Kovač
