BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Thousands of protesters braved a rainstorm in the Serbian capital on Friday to join a rally against a government crackdown on universities that have played a key role in months-long anti-corruption protests that continue to pressure the Balkan country’s populist government. The protesters gathered outside the Serbian government building in downtown Belgrade demanding that the authorities revoke measures brought so far against protesting university professors and deans, and abolish plans to change education laws they say would scrap the autonomy of the state-run universities. University students, backed by their professors, have led massive protests that started after a concrete canopy collapsed at a train station in Serbia's north in November, killing 16 people.