Blackwell Reference Online

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The Yugoslav student protests in June 1968 embraced the struggle for freedom, justice, and self-determination, defined as the underlying moral and political principles of the global youth movements of the era. Yugoslav protests were also marked by a protest between eastern and western influences integrating anti-capitalist and anti-bureaucratic elements. The protest also affirmed the fundamental values and ideologies of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SRFY). In essence, the Yugoslav students protested in the name of communist principles against a hypocritical and frustrating reality. The climax of the student movement was the week-long strike at Belgrade University from June 3–9, 1968, spreading to other university centers in Zagreb, Ljubljana, and Sarajevo. The occupied university in Belgrade was renamed Red University Karl Marx. Students and many professors who supported the action established democratically elected action committees (akcioni odbori) and held conventions (zborovi). In declarations the protesters demanded “abolition of all privileges for the elites, democratization of all information media and freedom of assembly and demonstration.” A popular slogan was “Down with the red bourgeoisie¡” The protesters affirmed however the ideological groundwork of the ruling system, calling for an extension of the system of workers' self-management . A statement ... log in or subscribe to read full text