section_path: Vigils and protests
section_name: Vigils and protests
paragraph_text: Vigils and protests
  
  A candlelight vigil was held in Kočani. KF Shkupi paid tribute to Andrej Lazarov in a club statement. In the wake of the fire, a series of spontaneous protests unfolded across the country. That evening, citizens began gathering in city squares including Kočani, Štip, Vinica, Strumica, and Gevgelija to mourn and seek justice. The following day, 17 March, saw peaceful protests and tributes nationwide. In Kočani, the protest intensified when some citizens, primarily youths, threw eggs, glass bottles and other objects at the municipal building, damaging the façade and breaking windows. The police blocked them from entering the building. They called for the appearance of Mayor Ljupčo Papazov, who had already resigned.
  
  A group then vandalized the Klasik café bar and a vehicle owned by the same individual associated with the Pulse nightclub. Protesters approached the Kočani Macedonian Police station, confronting officers without major incidents. A crowd overturned a car belonging to the owner of the Pulse Nightclub and tried to set his house on fire. Police tried to calm the situation by telling the crowd that there were children inside the building, but the crowd responded that no one prevented the deaths of the child victims of the fire. On 18 March, a crowd approached Papazov's house and attempted to breach the police barrier so that they could pelt the house with stones, but a priest pacified them, saying "Let's save the children first, then we'll burn down the city if you want."
  
  In Štip, students rallied, demanding accountability for the disaster that claimed five of their fellow residents. The demonstration began in the city square and moved towards the municipal building. At noon, thousands of students in Skopje observed a seven-minute silence at the Ss. Cyril and Methodius University of Skopje (UKIM) to honor the 59 lives lost. Speeches by Education and Science Minister Vesna Janevska and Rector Biljana Angelova were briefly interrupted when two attendees collapsed, requiring medical attention. Students began to whistle and shout at Janevska, interrupting her speech, and riot police surrounded her. Strumica also witnessed a peaceful gathering in its city square, with participants demanding justice for the fire victims. Gjorgji Gjorgiev, the drummer of the band DNK, was among the deceased; he hailed from Strumica. Additional peaceful protests occurred in Bitola, Kavadarci, Probištip, Tetovo, Veles, and other cities. The next day, 18 March, a public gathering was scheduled in Ohrid, as well as a student gathering at 18:00 (CET) on Macedonia Square in Skopje. On 18 March, a group of residents in Novi Sad, Serbia, gathered in Freedom Square to light candles in honour of the victims of the fire.
  
  On 18 March, rallies were held in every city across North Macedonia to honor the deceased and demand justice and accountability for the victims of the fire. The demonstrations, primarily organized by university students and high schoolers, drew participants of all ages.
  
  A rally took place at Macedonia Square, gathering several thousand citizens. Following the protest, seven media workers, including journalists from Reuters, were detained at the Centar police station. Authorities justified their detention by claiming they had been broadcasting live drone footage and the usage of drones was banned, although the Ministry of Interior announced the ban during the protest. A similar incident occurred in Kočani, where a crew from the Bulgarian television station BTV was also detained for operating a drone. On 22 March, North Macedonians in Thessaloniki gathered in Aristotelous Square to observe 60 minutes of silence, for all of the victims and the ambulance driver.
  
  On 24 March, a rally with several thousand attendees was held by protest movement Who is Next?, at which where activists called for accountability for the fire by the government, as they did not believe that they government would honor their promises and the law. The crowd approached the St. Naum of Ohrid hospital, where they applauded and praised the doctors and nurses, and then went to a government building where they called the government "murderers" and demanded the "entire government" resignation. On 26 March, Projkovska's students (she was a professor at UKIM) released 60 white balloons from the balcony of the UKIM Faculty of Music and held musical performances in her honor. On 29 March, Who is Next? held a protest outside the Sobranie Palace, the seat of the Assembly of North Macedonia.
  
  On 5 April, a protest in Kočani was held under the name of March for the Angels, which involved the families of some of the victims. On 19 April, families of the victims of the fire held a protest rally in Kočani demanding for the investigation and prosecutions to be increased in scope and accelerated. The rally ended in front of the Kočani local prosecutor's office.