Osman Karabegović (7 September 1911 – 24 June 1996) was a Yugoslav and Bosnian communist politician and a recipient of the

Order of the People's Hero The Order of the People's Hero or the Order of the National Hero ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Orden narodnog heroja, Oрден народног хероја; sl, Red narodnega heroja, mk, Oрден на народен херој, Orden na ...

. He joined the Communist Party of Yugoslavia in 1932. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, he was one of the leaders of the

Yugoslav Partisans The Yugoslav Partisans,Serbo-Croatian, Macedonian, Slovene: , or the National Liberation Army, sh-Latn-Cyrl, Narodnooslobodilačka vojska (NOV), Народноослободилачка војска (НОВ); mk, Народноослобод� ...

in Bosnia-Herzegovina. After the war, he held various posts in the

Socialist Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as SFR Yugoslavia or simply as Yugoslavia, was a country in Central and Southeast Europe. It emerged in 1945, following World War II, and lasted until 1992, with the breakup of Yugo ...

. In 1972, after he criticized the Yugoslav model of

workers' self-management Workers' self-management, also referred to as labor management and organizational self-management, is a form of organizational management based on self-directed work processes on the part of an organization's workforce. Self-management is a def ...

and the lack of democracy in the

Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina The Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Socijalistička Republika Bosna i Hercegovina, Социјалистичка Pепублика Босна и Херцеговина), commonly referred to as Socia ...

, he was expelled from the League of Communists of Yugoslavia. He was a strong supporter of Slobodan Milošević in 1980s and 1990s, and opposed

Alija Izetbegović Alija Izetbegović (; ; 8 August 1925 – 19 October 2003) was a Bosnian politician, lawyer, Islamic philosopher and author, who in 1992 became the first president of the Presidency of the newly independent Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovin ...

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...

. He died in Belgrade in 1996.

Early life

Karabegović was born on 7 September 1911 in

Banja Luka Banja Luka ( sr-Cyrl, Бања Лука, ) or Banjaluka ( sr-Cyrl, Бањалука, ) is the second largest city in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the largest city of Republika Srpska. Banja Luka is also the ''de facto'' capital of this entity. I ...

. He attended high school there and was an active member of the "Mlada Jugoslavija" association ( en, Young Yugoslavia). He joined the Communist Party of Yugoslavia in 1932 and in the same year was expelled from school because he participated in a students' strike. He finished the last of his classes of gymnasium in

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see names in other languages'') is the capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its administrative limits. The Sarajevo metropolitan area including Sarajevo ...

. Because of his activity in the Communist Party and

SKOJ , SKOJ mk, Сојуз на комунистичката младина на Југославија, СКМЈ sl, Zveza komunistične mladine Jugoslavije, ZKMJ , colorcode = red , founded = 1919 , dissolved = 1948 , succeeded by = League of S ...

he was arrested. He was released from prison under the pressure of public. In 1933, Karabegović entered the Veterinary Faculty in

Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital and largest city of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb stands near the international border between Croatia and Slov ...

. Again, he actively participated in the work of SKOJ and the Communist Party. He was arrested for the same reasons a few times by police in Zagreb. In 1935 he was ordered to return in Banja Luka. During 1936–37 he studied medicine at the

University of Zagreb The University of Zagreb ( hr, Sveučilište u Zagrebu, ; la, Universitas Studiorum Zagrabiensis) is the largest Croatian university and the oldest continuously operating university in the area covering Central Europe south of Vienna and all of ...

and became a member of the Students' Committee of

and a member of the Action Committee in Belgrade. He participated in various demonstrations against the regime of

Alexander I of Yugoslavia Alexander I ( sr-Cyrl, Александар I Карађорђевић, Aleksandar I Karađorđević, ) ( – 9 October 1934), also known as Alexander the Unifier, was the prince regent of the Kingdom of Serbia from 1914 and later the King of Yu ...

for which he was again arrested a few times.

World War II

After World War II started in Yugoslavia, Karabegović returned to Banja Luka and became a member of the Regional Committee of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia for

Bosanska Krajina Bosanska Krajina ( sr-cyrl, Босанска Крајина, ) is a geographical region, a subregion of Bosnia, in western Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is enclosed by a number of rivers, namely the Sava (north), Glina (northwest), Vrbanja and Vrba ...

. He participated in organizing a rebellion against the

Axis forces The Axis powers, ; it, Potenze dell'Asse ; ja, 枢軸国 ''Sūjikukoku'', group=nb originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis, was a military coalition that initiated World War II and fought against the Allies. Its principal members were ...

on 4 July 1941 in Šehitluci near Banja Luka. This was the final agreement by the Communists to begin a rebellion in Bosanska Krajina. In the second half of June 1941 Karabegović visited

Prijedor Prijedor ( sr-cyrl, Приједор, ) is a city and municipality located in the Republika Srpska entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. As of 2013, it has a population of 89,397 inhabitants within its administrative limits. Prijedor is situated in ...

Bosanski Novi Novi Grad ( Serbian Cyrillic: ), formerly Bosanski Novi ( sr-cyrl, Босански Нови), is a town and municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Administratively, it is located in the Republika Srpska entity. Situated in the far northwest ...

, Krupa and

Bihać Bihać ( cyrl, Бихаћ) is a city and the administrative centre of Una-Sana Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated on the banks of river Una in northwestern Bosnia and Herzegovin ...

where he held a few meetings with Partisan military officers and the Party's committees and transferred decisions made by the Communist Party about plans of a rebellion. In the beginning of July 1941, Karabegović, along with Josip Mažar Šoša, visited

Bosanski Petrovac Bosanski Petrovac ( sr-cyrl, Босански Петровац) is a town and municipality located in the Una-Sana Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. As of 2013 census, the municipality has a p ...

and

Dvor Very high frequency omnirange station (VOR) is a type of short-range radio navigation system for aircraft, enabling aircraft with a receiving unit to determine its position and stay on course by receiving radio signals transmitted by a network ...

and formed committees in preparation for the rebellion. On the day when the rebellion started, 25 July 1941, Karabegović participated in consultations at Orlovci near

where the Communist Party made a schedule for the rebellion. Karabegović was sent along with Dr

Mladen Stojanović Mladen Stojanović ( sr-cyr, Младен Стојановић; 7 April 1896 – 1 April 1942) was a Bosnian Serb and Yugoslav physician who led a detachment of Partisans on and around Mount Kozara in northwestern Bosnia durin ...

and Josip Mažar Šoša to

Kozara Kozara ( sr-cyrl, Козара) is a mountain in western Bosnia and Herzegovina, in the town of Kozarac and in the Bosanska Krajina region, bounded by the Sava River to the north, the Vrbas to the east, the Sana to the south, and the Una to the ...

for organizing the rebellion. Maglajić, Himka. Kazivanja o Kasimu Hadžiću, pg. 62. Glas, 1982. In August 1941, when the Second Detachment of Bosanska Krajina was formed, Karabegović became its political commissar. In the beginning of November 1941, Karabegović participated in military consultations held in the Partisan Supreme Command for Bosnia and Herzegovina of Romanija. He was one of the organizers of the regional party's consultations in Bosanska Krajina which was held on 22 February 1942 in Kneževo. In those consultations, Karabegović became a political commissar of the Operational Headquarters for Bosanska Krajina, and when the First Bosnian Corps was formed at the end of 1942, he continued the same duties there. Throughout the war, Karabegović held various posts, he was the Secretary of the Regional Committee of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia for Bosanska Krajina, a member of the Regional Committee for Communist Party of Yugoslavia and a member of the Supreme Command of the

for Bosnia and Herzegovina. He was also an alderman in the First and Second Session of the AVNOJ and in all of the sessions of

ZAVNOBiH The State Anti-fascist Council for the National Liberation of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Zemaljsko antifašističko vijeće narodnog oslobođenja Bosne i Hercegovine, Земаљскo aнтифашистичко виjеће наро� ...

Communist Yugoslavia

After the war he held various posts. From 1946 to 1974 he was the envoy of the Assembly of the

Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as SFR Yugoslavia or simply as Yugoslavia, was a country in Central and Southeast Europe. It emerged in 1945, following World War II, and lasted until 1992, with the breakup of Yu ...

and from 1947 to 1956 he was a member of the Federal Government. Karabegović was also the President of the Executive Council of the People's Republic of Yugoslavia (''de facto'' Prime Minister) from 1956 to 1963. Karabegović was a member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party, and from 1948 he was a member of the Presidency of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia. On 23 July 1952 he became a recipient of the

People's Hero of Yugoslavia The Order of the People's Hero or the Order of the National Hero ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Orden narodnog heroja, Oрден народног хероја; sl, Red narodnega heroja, mk, Oрден на народен херој, Orden na ...

. In September 1972 Karabegović criticised the communist leadership in the

and the Yugoslav model of

as staging while the highest ranking individuals controlled public life completely. He also criticised the lack of democracy, saying that none of the members of the Executive Council of the SR Bosnia and Herzegovina would be elected if there was a democratic system. Older members of the communist leadership were critical of transformation towards close-society, while the younger members saw it as the only way to transform Bosnia and Herzegovina. All critics, including Karabegović, were expelled from the League of Communists. Osman Karabegović was a strong supporter of policies of Slobodan Milošević in 1980s and 1990s. He opposed

claiming that there was more "order and lawfulness" in the times of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

and the

Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 ...

than during the "dictatorship of the enraged Izetbegović's fundamentalist bandits". On 24 June 1996, Karabegović died in Belgrade and was buried in the walkway of National Heroes in '' Novo groblje''.

Private life

Karabegovic was married to his wife Ljubica until his death in 1996. Their son Enes Karabegović was Ambassador of Yugoslavia to Iraq. According to a popular theory, he shared a mutual dislike with

Avdo Humo Avdo Humo (1 February 1914 – 24 January 1983) was a Yugoslav and Bosnian communist politician, writer and an Order of the People's Hero recipient. Humo held highest positions in the Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In 1972, Hum ...

Works

* *

References

Notes

Books

* *

Other sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Karabegovic, Osman Prime Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina 1911 births 1996 deaths Yugoslav Partisans members Yugoslav politicians Bosnia and Herzegovina atheists Bosnia and Herzegovina politicians Recipients of the Order of the People's Hero League of Communists of Bosnia and Herzegovina politicians People from Banja Luka Bosnia and Herzegovina people of World War II