Belgrade Students Urge Cultural Boycott of EXPO 2027 Over Funding Concerns

Students protesting at the University of Belgrade have issued a call for artists, cultural workers, and institutions to boycott the upcoming EXPO 2027 exhibition. The group, identifying as "Students in Blockade," stated on Instagram that the Ministry of Culture has, for the second consecutive year, eliminated regular public funding for contemporary artistic creation. Instead, budget funds have been exclusively redirected to the EXPO project, a three-month event scheduled for 2027.

The students allege that the ministry is demanding that cultural institutions align their 2027 programs with the EXPO's agenda and pre-plan content for the event. They are urging cultural institutions not to treat participation in EXPO programs as a mere administrative routine. The students emphasized that no decision on participation should be made without a publicly accessible legal basis, financial plan, contract, programmatic justification, and prior discussion with employees and the professional community.

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The Ministry of Culture has, for the second consecutive year, eliminated regular public funding for contemporary artistic creation in the Republic of Serbia and has redirected budget funds exclusively to the Expo project, which is being realized over three months in 2027.

This boycott call highlights a significant tension between traditional cultural funding and large-scale state-sponsored events. The students' protest centers on the perceived neglect of contemporary art in favor of a single, high-profile international exhibition, raising questions about cultural priorities and public discourse in Serbia.

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We call on cultural institutions not to accept participation in Expo programs as an administrative routine. No decision on participation should be made without a publicly accessible legal basis, financial plan, contract, programmatic justification, and prior discussion with employees and the professional community.