Socialist Republic of Serbia
Encyclopedia
Socialist Republic of Serbia was a socialist state
that was a constituent country
of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
. It is a predecessor of modern day Serbia
, which served as the biggest republic in the Yugoslav
federation
and held the largest population of all the Yugoslav republics, and it housed the greatest concentration of economical and political development in the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
as its capital Belgrade
was also the federal capital of Yugoslavia.
and Kosovo
which had the same rights and privileges as constituent republics of Yugoslavia.
For most of its existence in the SFRY, Serbia was loyal and generally subordinate to the federal government. This changed after the death of Josip Broz Tito
in 1980 and the rise of Albanian as well as Serbian nationalism in Kosovo, which resulted in a split in the League of Communists on how to respond. A successful round of coups in the Communist party leadership of Serbia as well as Montenegro occurred from 1988 to 1989, led by Slobodan Milošević
who supported Serbian nationalists in Kosovo in removing Kosovo's autonomy.
In 1989, Milošević became President of the republic and demanded that the federal Yugoslav government act for the interests of Serbia in Kosovo by sending in the Yugoslav Peoples Army to take control of the province. Opposition to such action and the demands by Serbia for a "one-member, one-vote" system in the Yugoslav League of Communists, which would have given a majority of votes to Serbs, precipitated ethnic tensions and the collapse of the League of Communists of Yugoslavia and of Yugoslavia itself by 1991.
After 1990, the state was known simply as Republic of Serbia (Republika Srbija) which was a constituent republic in the rump Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, then as Serbia and Montenegro
until 2006 when Serbia became an independent state.
and Socialist Autonomous Province of Kosovo
. The central part of the Socialist Republic of Serbia located outside of the two autonomous provinces was generally known as "Serbia proper
" ("Uža Srbija").
In the Socialist Republic, the only legal political party was the League of Communists of Serbia
(Savez komunista Srbije), which was part of the League of Communists of Yugoslavia
. The party remained relatively stable and loyal to the federal party until the late 1980s, when the party became split over what action to take in Kosovo when protests and fights broke out between ethnic Albanians and Serbs.
The more traditional Communists supported President Ivan Stambolic
advocated continued neutrality as a means to solve the dispute while more radical and nationalist-leaning members supported Slobodan Milosevic
advocated the protection of Kosovo's Serbs who had claimed that their population was being pressured to leave Kosovo by Albanian separatists. Milosevic utilized public sentiment and opposition to Kosovo separatism to rally large numbers of supporters to help him overthrow the Communist leadership in Vojvodina, Kosovo and the Socialist Republic of Montenegro in what was known as the anti-bureaucratic revolution
. Afterwards, the Serbian League of Communists selected Milosevic as their leader. Milosevic took a hard stand on Albanian nationalism in Kosovo and pressured the Yugoslav government to give him emergency powers to deal with Kosovo separatists. Furthermore he reduced the autonomy of the autonomous provinces of Kosovo and Vojvodina and installed politicians loyal to him to serve as their representatives.
In the congress of the Yugoslav League of Communists in 1990, Milosevic and his subordinate representatives for Vojvodina, Kosovo and the Socialist Republic of Montenegro
attempted to silence opposition from the Socialist Republic of Slovenia
which opposed the actions taken against Kosovo by blocking all reforms proposed by the Slovene representatives. The tactic failed and Slovenia, along with its ally Croatia, abdicated from the Yugoslav Communist Party. This caused the Yugoslav Communist party to fall apart, and then the state of Yugoslavia itself one year later.
Socialist state
A socialist state generally refers to any state constitutionally dedicated to the construction of a socialist society. It is closely related to the political strategy of "state socialism", a set of ideologies and policies that believe a socialist economy can be established through government...
that was a constituent country
Constituent country
Constituent country is a phrase sometimes used in contexts in which a country makes up a part of a larger entity. The term constituent country does not have any defined legal meaning, and is used simply to refer to a country which is a part Constituent country is a phrase sometimes used in contexts...
of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was the Yugoslav state that existed from the abolition of the Yugoslav monarchy until it was dissolved in 1992 amid the Yugoslav Wars. It was a socialist state and a federation made up of six socialist republics: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,...
. It is a predecessor of modern day Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
, which served as the biggest republic in the Yugoslav
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
federation
Federation
A federation , also known as a federal state, is a type of sovereign state characterized by a union of partially self-governing states or regions united by a central government...
and held the largest population of all the Yugoslav republics, and it housed the greatest concentration of economical and political development in the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was the Yugoslav state that existed from the abolition of the Yugoslav monarchy until it was dissolved in 1992 amid the Yugoslav Wars. It was a socialist state and a federation made up of six socialist republics: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,...
as its capital Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
was also the federal capital of Yugoslavia.
History
From 1945 to 1963, the republic was officially known as People's Republic of Serbia (Narodna Republika Srbija), and from 1963 to 1990 as Socialist Republic of Serbia (Socijalistička Republika Srbija). The republic was controversially internally divided in 1974 to include two autonomous provinces, VojvodinaSocialist Autonomous Province of Vojvodina
Socialist Autonomous Province of Vojvodina , also known shortly as SAP Vojvodina , was one of the two socialist autonomous provinces of the Socialist Republic of Serbia from 1963 to 1990 and one of the federal units of the Socialist Federal...
and Kosovo
Socialist Autonomous Province of Kosovo
Socialist Autonomous Province of Kosovo was one of the two socialist autonomous areas of the Socialist Republic of Serbia incorporated into the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia from 1974 until 1990...
which had the same rights and privileges as constituent republics of Yugoslavia.
For most of its existence in the SFRY, Serbia was loyal and generally subordinate to the federal government. This changed after the death of Josip Broz Tito
Josip Broz Tito
Marshal Josip Broz Tito – 4 May 1980) was a Yugoslav revolutionary and statesman. While his presidency has been criticized as authoritarian, Tito was a popular public figure both in Yugoslavia and abroad, viewed as a unifying symbol for the nations of the Yugoslav federation...
in 1980 and the rise of Albanian as well as Serbian nationalism in Kosovo, which resulted in a split in the League of Communists on how to respond. A successful round of coups in the Communist party leadership of Serbia as well as Montenegro occurred from 1988 to 1989, led by Slobodan Milošević
Slobodan Milošević
Slobodan Milošević was President of Serbia and Yugoslavia. He served as the President of Socialist Republic of Serbia and Republic of Serbia from 1989 until 1997 in three terms and as President of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia from 1997 to 2000...
who supported Serbian nationalists in Kosovo in removing Kosovo's autonomy.
In 1989, Milošević became President of the republic and demanded that the federal Yugoslav government act for the interests of Serbia in Kosovo by sending in the Yugoslav Peoples Army to take control of the province. Opposition to such action and the demands by Serbia for a "one-member, one-vote" system in the Yugoslav League of Communists, which would have given a majority of votes to Serbs, precipitated ethnic tensions and the collapse of the League of Communists of Yugoslavia and of Yugoslavia itself by 1991.
After 1990, the state was known simply as Republic of Serbia (Republika Srbija) which was a constituent republic in the rump Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, then as Serbia and Montenegro
Serbia and Montenegro
Serbia and Montenegro was a country in southeastern Europe, formed from two former republics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia : Serbia and Montenegro. Following the breakup of Yugoslavia, it was established in 1992 as a federation called the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia...
until 2006 when Serbia became an independent state.
Administrative divisions
Within Socialist Republic of Serbia two autonomous provinces existed: Socialist Autonomous Province of VojvodinaSocialist Autonomous Province of Vojvodina
Socialist Autonomous Province of Vojvodina , also known shortly as SAP Vojvodina , was one of the two socialist autonomous provinces of the Socialist Republic of Serbia from 1963 to 1990 and one of the federal units of the Socialist Federal...
and Socialist Autonomous Province of Kosovo
Socialist Autonomous Province of Kosovo
Socialist Autonomous Province of Kosovo was one of the two socialist autonomous areas of the Socialist Republic of Serbia incorporated into the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia from 1974 until 1990...
. The central part of the Socialist Republic of Serbia located outside of the two autonomous provinces was generally known as "Serbia proper
Central Serbia
Central Serbia , also referred to as Serbia proper , was the region of Serbia from 1945 to 2009. It included central parts of Serbia outside of the autonomous provinces of Kosovo and Vojvodina. The region of Central Serbia was not an administrative division of Serbia as such; it was under the...
" ("Uža Srbija").
1971 census
In 1971, total population of the Socialist Republic of Serbia numbered 8,446,591 people, including:- SerbsSerbsThe Serbs are a South Slavic ethnic group of the Balkans and southern Central Europe. Serbs are located mainly in Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and form a sizable minority in Croatia, the Republic of Macedonia and Slovenia. Likewise, Serbs are an officially recognized minority in...
= 6,142,071 (72.71%) - AlbaniansAlbaniansAlbanians are a nation and ethnic group native to Albania and neighbouring countries. They speak the Albanian language. More than half of all Albanians live in Albania and Kosovo...
= 984,761 (11.66%) - Hungarians = 430,314 (5.10%)
- CroatsCroatsCroats are a South Slavic ethnic group mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. There are around 4 million Croats living inside Croatia and up to 4.5 million throughout the rest of the world. Responding to political, social and economic pressure, many Croats have...
= 184,913 (2.19%) - MuslimsMuslims by nationalityMuslims by nationality was a term used in Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia as an official designation of nationality of Slavic Muslims. They were one of the constitutive groups of Bosnia and Herzegovina...
= 154,330 (1.83%) - YugoslavsYugoslavsYugoslavs is a national designation used by a minority of South Slavs across the countries of the former Yugoslavia and in the diaspora...
= 123,824 (1.47%) - SlovaksSlovaksThe Slovaks, Slovak people, or Slovakians are a West Slavic people that primarily inhabit Slovakia and speak the Slovak language, which is closely related to the Czech language.Most Slovaks today live within the borders of the independent Slovakia...
= 76,733 - RomaniansRomaniansThe Romanians are an ethnic group native to Romania, who speak Romanian; they are the majority inhabitants of Romania....
= 57,419 - BulgariansBulgariansThe Bulgarians are a South Slavic nation and ethnic group native to Bulgaria and neighbouring regions. Emigration has resulted in immigrant communities in a number of other countries.-History and ethnogenesis:...
= 53,800 - Roma = 49,894
- MacedoniansMacedonians (ethnic group)The Macedonians also referred to as Macedonian Slavs: "... the term Slavomacedonian was introduced and was accepted by the community itself, which at the time had a much more widespread non-Greek Macedonian ethnic consciousness...
= 42,675 - RusynsPannonian RusynsRusyns in Pannonia, or simply Rusyns or Ruthenians , are a Slavic minority in Serbia and Croatia...
= 20,608 - TurksTurkish peopleTurkish people, also known as the "Turks" , are an ethnic group primarily living in Turkey and in the former lands of the Ottoman Empire where Turkish minorities had been established in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Romania...
= 18,220 - Slovenes = 15,957
- Vlachs = 14,724
1981 census
In 1981, total population of the Socialist Republic of Serbia numbered 9,313,677 people, including:- SerbsSerbsThe Serbs are a South Slavic ethnic group of the Balkans and southern Central Europe. Serbs are located mainly in Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and form a sizable minority in Croatia, the Republic of Macedonia and Slovenia. Likewise, Serbs are an officially recognized minority in...
= 6,331,527 (67.96%) - AlbaniansAlbaniansAlbanians are a nation and ethnic group native to Albania and neighbouring countries. They speak the Albanian language. More than half of all Albanians live in Albania and Kosovo...
= 1,303,032 (13.99%) - YugoslavsYugoslavsYugoslavs is a national designation used by a minority of South Slavs across the countries of the former Yugoslavia and in the diaspora...
= 441,941 (4.75%) - Hungarians = 390,468 (4.19%)
- MuslimsMuslims by nationalityMuslims by nationality was a term used in Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia as an official designation of nationality of Slavic Muslims. They were one of the constitutive groups of Bosnia and Herzegovina...
= 215,166 (2.31%) - CroatsCroatsCroats are a South Slavic ethnic group mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. There are around 4 million Croats living inside Croatia and up to 4.5 million throughout the rest of the world. Responding to political, social and economic pressure, many Croats have...
= 149,368 (1.60%) - Roma = 110,956 (1.19%)
- MacedoniansMacedonians (ethnic group)The Macedonians also referred to as Macedonian Slavs: "... the term Slavomacedonian was introduced and was accepted by the community itself, which at the time had a much more widespread non-Greek Macedonian ethnic consciousness...
= 48,986 - Slovenes = 12,006
Politics
League of Communists of Serbia
The League of Communists of Serbia was the Serbian branch of the League of Communists of Yugoslavia, the sole legal party of Yugoslavia from 1945 to 1990. Under a new constitution ratified in 1974, greater power was devolved to the various republic level branches. In the late 1980s, the party was...
(Savez komunista Srbije), which was part of the League of Communists of Yugoslavia
League of Communists of Yugoslavia
League of Communists of Yugoslavia , before 1952 the Communist Party of Yugoslavia League of Communists of Yugoslavia (Serbo-Croatian: Savez komunista Jugoslavije/Савез комуниста Југославије, Slovene: Zveza komunistov Jugoslavije, Macedonian: Сојуз на комунистите на Југославија, Sojuz na...
. The party remained relatively stable and loyal to the federal party until the late 1980s, when the party became split over what action to take in Kosovo when protests and fights broke out between ethnic Albanians and Serbs.
The more traditional Communists supported President Ivan Stambolic
Ivan Stambolic
Ivan Stambolić was a Communist Party of Yugoslavia official and the President of the Republic of Serbia in the 1980s who was later victim of an assassination....
advocated continued neutrality as a means to solve the dispute while more radical and nationalist-leaning members supported Slobodan Milosevic
Slobodan Milošević
Slobodan Milošević was President of Serbia and Yugoslavia. He served as the President of Socialist Republic of Serbia and Republic of Serbia from 1989 until 1997 in three terms and as President of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia from 1997 to 2000...
advocated the protection of Kosovo's Serbs who had claimed that their population was being pressured to leave Kosovo by Albanian separatists. Milosevic utilized public sentiment and opposition to Kosovo separatism to rally large numbers of supporters to help him overthrow the Communist leadership in Vojvodina, Kosovo and the Socialist Republic of Montenegro in what was known as the anti-bureaucratic revolution
Anti-bureaucratic revolution
Anti-bureaucratic revolution as a term, refers to a series of mass protests against governments of Yugoslavian republics and autonomous provinces during 1988 and 1989, which led to resignations of leaderships of Kosovo, Vojvodina and Montenegro, and the capture of power by politicians close to...
. Afterwards, the Serbian League of Communists selected Milosevic as their leader. Milosevic took a hard stand on Albanian nationalism in Kosovo and pressured the Yugoslav government to give him emergency powers to deal with Kosovo separatists. Furthermore he reduced the autonomy of the autonomous provinces of Kosovo and Vojvodina and installed politicians loyal to him to serve as their representatives.
In the congress of the Yugoslav League of Communists in 1990, Milosevic and his subordinate representatives for Vojvodina, Kosovo and the Socialist Republic of Montenegro
Socialist Republic of Montenegro
Socialist Republic of Montenegro or SR Montenegro in shortened form, was a socialist state that was a constituent country in the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. It is a predecessor of the modern day Montenegro...
attempted to silence opposition from the Socialist Republic of Slovenia
Socialist Republic of Slovenia
The Socialist Republic of Slovenia was a socialist state that was a constituent country of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia from 1943 until 1990...
which opposed the actions taken against Kosovo by blocking all reforms proposed by the Slovene representatives. The tactic failed and Slovenia, along with its ally Croatia, abdicated from the Yugoslav Communist Party. This caused the Yugoslav Communist party to fall apart, and then the state of Yugoslavia itself one year later.
Chairman of ASNOS (1944 - 1945)
- Siniša Stanković (12 November 1944 - 7 April 1945)
Presidents
- President of the Presidium of the People's Assembly (1945 - 1953)
- Siniša Stanković (7 April 1945 - March 1953)
- Presidents of the National Assembly (1953 - 1974)
- Petar StambolićPetar StambolicPetar Stambolić was a Yugoslav communist politician who served as the President of the Federal Executive Council of Yugoslavia from 1963 to 1967 and President of the Presidency of Yugoslavia from 1982 until 1983.Stambolić was born in Brezova, Ivanjica, Kingdom of Serbia and died in Belgrade, Serbia...
(December 1953 - April 1957) - Jovan Veselinov (April 1957 - 26 June 1963)
- Dušan Petrović (26 June 1963 - 6 May 1967)
- Miloš MinićMiloš MinicMiloš Minić was a Serbian communist politician....
(6 May 1967 - 6 May 1969) - Dragoslav Marković (6 May 1969 - 19 April 1974)
- Živan Vasiljević (19 April - 6 May 1974)
- Petar Stambolić
- Presidents of the Presidency (1974 - 1990)
- Dragoslav Marković (6 May 1974 - 5 May 1978)
- Dobrivoje Vidić (5 May 1978 - 5 May 1982)
- Nikola LjubičićNikola LjubicicNikola Ljubičić was the President of the Presidency of Serbia , a member of the Presidency of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia , and the Minister of Defence of Yugoslavia...
(5 May 1982 - 5 May 1984) - Dušan Čkrebić (5 May 1984 - 5 May 1986)
- Ivan StambolićIvan StambolicIvan Stambolić was a Communist Party of Yugoslavia official and the President of the Republic of Serbia in the 1980s who was later victim of an assassination....
(5 May 1986 - 14 December 1987) - Petar GračaninPetar GracaninPetar Gračanin - Serbian military commander....
(14 December 1987 - 20 March 1989) - Ljubiša Igić (20 March - 8 May 1989) (acting)
- Slobodan MiloševićSlobodan MiloševićSlobodan Milošević was President of Serbia and Yugoslavia. He served as the President of Socialist Republic of Serbia and Republic of Serbia from 1989 until 1997 in three terms and as President of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia from 1997 to 2000...
(8 May 1989 - 28 September 1990)
Prime Ministers
- Minister for Serbia in Yugoslav government
- Jaša Prodanović (7 March 1945 - 9 April 1945
- President of the Government
- Blagoje Nešković (9 April 1945 - 5 September 1948)
- Petar StambolićPetar StambolicPetar Stambolić was a Yugoslav communist politician who served as the President of the Federal Executive Council of Yugoslavia from 1963 to 1967 and President of the Presidency of Yugoslavia from 1982 until 1983.Stambolić was born in Brezova, Ivanjica, Kingdom of Serbia and died in Belgrade, Serbia...
(5 September 1948 - 5 February 1953)
- President of the Executive Council
- Petar StambolićPetar StambolicPetar Stambolić was a Yugoslav communist politician who served as the President of the Federal Executive Council of Yugoslavia from 1963 to 1967 and President of the Presidency of Yugoslavia from 1982 until 1983.Stambolić was born in Brezova, Ivanjica, Kingdom of Serbia and died in Belgrade, Serbia...
(5 February 1953 - 16 December 1953) - Jovan Veselinov (16 December 1953 - 6 April 1957)
- Miloš MinićMiloš MinicMiloš Minić was a Serbian communist politician....
(6 April 1957 - 9 June 1962) - Slobodan Penezić Krcun (9 June 1962 - 6 November 1964)
- Stevan Doronjski (Acting; 6 November 1964 - 17 November 1964)
- Dragi Stamenković (17 November 1964 - 6 June 1967)
- Đurica Jojkić (6 June 1967 - 7 May 1969)
- Milenko Bojanić (7 May 1969 - 6 May 1974)
- Dušan Čkrebić (6 May 1974 - 6 May 1978)
- Ivan StambolićIvan StambolicIvan Stambolić was a Communist Party of Yugoslavia official and the President of the Republic of Serbia in the 1980s who was later victim of an assassination....
(6 May 1978 - 5 May 1982) - Branislav Ikonić (5 May 1982 - 6 May 1986)
- Desimir Jevtić (6 May 1986 - 5 December 1989)
- Stanko Radmilović (5 December 1989 - 28 September 1990)
- Petar Stambolić
See also
- SerbiaSerbiaSerbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
- History of SerbiaHistory of SerbiaThe history of Serbia, as a country, begins with the Slavic settlements in the Balkans, established in the 6th century in territories governed by the Byzantine Empire. Through centuries, the Serbian realm evolved into a Kingdom , then an Empire , before the Ottomans annexed it in 1540...
- Socialist Federal Republic of YugoslaviaSocialist Federal Republic of YugoslaviaThe Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was the Yugoslav state that existed from the abolition of the Yugoslav monarchy until it was dissolved in 1992 amid the Yugoslav Wars. It was a socialist state and a federation made up of six socialist republics: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,...