Authorities in Serbia are facing increasingly fierce opposition to lithium mining after Belgrade signed a memorandum of strategic partnership for sustainable raw materials with the European Union on July 19, BGNES reported.
The deal sparked a new wave of daily protests across the country.
On August 6, protests were held in Sremska Mitrovica, Jagodina, Indzhia and other settlements. The demonstrators demanded that the international corporation Rio Tinto, which plans to mine lithium, leave Serbia. With the memorandum with the EU "on a strategic partnership in sustainable raw materials, battery production chains and electric vehicles", the government in Belgrade has been encouraged to start lithium mining, which has met with huge displeasure from environmental activists, civil movements and the opposition.
The main argument of the protesters is that the mining of lithium in the agricultural area in the western part of the country will cause immeasurable damage to the environment and the local community, and the citizens' messages from previous protests are that they do not want to sacrifice health for short-term and unclear economic benefits . In addition, President Aleksandar Vucic and his subordinates are accused of corruption and favoring Rio Tinto.
So far, protests have been held in 32 cities in Serbia. Thousands of people participated, and by Saturday, August 10, new protests have been announced in 20 more cities.
The central protest is scheduled for August 10 in Belgrade. That's when the deadline environmental groups and protesters gave the Serbian government to write and submit to parliament a law to permanently ban geological exploration and mining of lithium and boron in Serbia expired. | BGNES
