Branko Mikulić (10 June 1928 – 12 April 1994) was a Yugoslav politician who served as Prime Minister of Yugoslavia from 1986 to 1989. Mikulić was one of the leading politicians in

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

during the communist rule in the former

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

. He was a member of the Presidency of Yugoslavia for SR Bosnia and Herzegovina from 1984 to 1986, and previously served as President of the Presidency of SR Bosnia and Herzegovina from 1982 to 1983. Mikulić also served as President of the Executive Council of SR Bosnia and Herzegovina from 1967 to 1969. He was President of the League of Communists of Bosnia and Herzegovina from 1969 to 1978 as well.

Early life and education

Mikulić was born to a Bosnian Croat family in 1928 in village Podgrađe, Municipality of

Gornji Vakuf Gornji Vakuf-Uskoplje ( sr-cyrl, Горњи Вакуф-Ускопље) is a town and municipality located in Central Bosnia Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Etymology Although settlements ...

, at the time

Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 to 1929, it was officially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, but the term "Yugoslavia" () has been its colloq ...

. His father was a prosperous farmer and a leading local member of the

Croatian Peasant Party The Croatian Peasant Party (, HSS) is an agrarianism, agrarian List of political parties in Croatia, political party in Croatia founded on 22 December 1904 by Antun Radić, Antun and Stjepan Radić as Croatian Peoples' Peasant Party (HPSS). The ...

, who during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

became a deputy on the State Anti-fascist Council for the National Liberation of Bosnia and Herzegovina or (''abv.'' ZAVNOBiH). Mikulić finished gymnasium in Bugojno and together with his father Jure joined the

Yugoslav Partisans The Yugoslav Partisans,Serbo-Croatian, Macedonian language, Macedonian, and Slovene language, Slovene: , officially the National Liberation Army and Partisan Detachments of Yugoslavia sh-Latn-Cyrl, Narodnooslobodilačka vojska i partizanski odr ...

in 1943. After the war, he attended the

University of Zagreb The University of Zagreb (, ) is a public university, public research university in Zagreb, Croatia. It is the largest Croatian university and one of the oldest continuously operating universities in Europe. The University of Zagreb and the Unive ...

's Faculty of Economy.

Early political career

As a young and ambitious party leader, after studying in

Zagreb Zagreb ( ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, north of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the ...

, Mikulić returned to his birthplace to become a full-time politician. He became a deputy for Bugojno and for the West Bosnian district, and in 1965 secretary of the Central Committee of the League of Communists of Bosnia and Herzegovina – before being elected its president in 1969.

Bosniak emancipation and republic's nationhood

He insisted on distinctiveness of Bosnia and Herzegovina which was characterized by historical permeation of cultures and customs that "shaped the man of this land" and enforced a unique and distinctive "Bosnian soul", but he never missed to emphasize the value of "unity of particularity" and "particularity in unity", as well as the fact that Bosnia and Herzegovina is the "motherland of all those who live there". He never shied away to criticize attempts of outside political centers, especially those in Croatia and Serbia, to interfere with Bosnia and Herzegovina internal affairs. Mikulić and his team proceeded to build a system of social and national equality on the

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, Земаљско антифашистичко виjеће нар� ...

model, by way of full emancipation of the

Bosniak The Bosniaks (, Cyrillic script, Cyrillic: Бошњаци, ; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to the Southeast European historical region of Bosnia (region), Bosnia, today part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and who sha ...

nation and reintegration of the

Bosnian Croats The Croats of Bosnia and Herzegovina (), often referred to as Bosnian Croats () or Herzegovinian Croats (), are native to Bosnia and Herzegovina and constitute the third most populous ethnic group, after Bosniaks and Serbs. They are also one of ...

into the political system. Meanwhile, western

Herzegovina Herzegovina ( or ; sh-Latn-Cyrl, Hercegovina, separator=" / ", Херцеговина, ) is the southern and smaller of two main geographical Regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being Bosnia (reg ...

enjoyed economic regeneration during Mikulić's rule. In 1970, prior to the 1971 population census in Yugoslavia, Mikulić confronted a group of older generation of Bosnian officials, including two powerful Muslim politicians, who complained to Tito that the (m)uslim national status does not need any further resolution nor de iure verification, because, as they contended, (m)uslims are merely an Islamised Serbs, Montenegrins, Croats, and Yugoslavs, after which Tito requested Mikulić's immediate presence and explanation. Mikulić was ready, and after his expose at the meeting Tito fully agreed that without Bosniak emancipation there can be no Bosnia and Herzegovina either. While working within the communist system, Mikulić joined forces with a group, who belonged to a second generation of post-WWII politicians, and which included Džemal Bijedić, Milanko Renovica and Hamdija Pozderac. They strived to reinforce and protect the sovereignty of Bosnia and Herzegovina and achieve full national equality on the basis of both

and Second AVNOJ conclusions, and with a system reform in 1971, which eventually resulted in new constitution of 1974, they were successful. Mikulić saw industrial and economic development of the Republic as priority, but pushed for its cultural development with the same determination. They were considered to be a backbone of the political system of Bosnia and Herzegovina during much of the 1970s and '80s. Their efforts proved key during the turbulent period following Tito's death in 1980 and are today considered some of the early steps towards Bosnian independence.

Premiership (1986–1989)

Mikulić was nominated as

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

by the Yugoslav Presidency as successor to Milka Planinc in January 1986. In

Ljubljana {{Infobox settlement , name = Ljubljana , official_name = , settlement_type = Capital city , image_skyline = {{multiple image , border = infobox , perrow = 1/2/2/1 , total_widt ...

, Slovenian sociologist Tomaž Mastnak criticized Mikulić's nomination over the radio. The government subsequently laid charges against Mastnak. On 15 May 1986, he was appointed President of the Federal Executive Council of Yugoslavia. In March 1987, Mikulić was publicly rebuked for his economic policy by striking workers who refused to serve him while in

Kranjska Gora Kranjska Gora (; ) is a town in northwestern Slovenia, on the Sava Dolinka River in the Upper Carniola region, close to the Austrian and Italy, Italian borders. It is the seat of the Municipality of Kranjska Gora. The tripoint between Austria, It ...

for a ski-jump competition. After the outbreak of 70 strikes nationally in a two-week period (with strikes being illegal in Yugoslavia), Mikulić threatened to mobilize the

army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...

to restore order in May 1987. His government devalued the

dinar The dinar () is the name of the principal currency unit in several countries near the Mediterranean Sea, with a more widespread historical use. The English word "dinar" is the transliteration of the Arabic دينار (''dīnār''), which was bor ...

by 25% on 17 November 1987. Mikulić reached a Standby Agreement with the

International Monetary Fund The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution funded by 191 member countries, with headquarters in Washington, D.C. It is regarded as the global lender of las ...

in 1988. SR Croatia and SR Slovenia attempted to launch a no-confidence motion against Mikulić in May 1988, but this proved unsuccessful. In June 1988, several thousand people protested in front of the Federal Assembly calling for Mikulić's resignation. After a no-confidence vote in the Federal Assembly, Mikulić resigned his post on 30 December 1988 and returned to

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ), ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'' is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 2 ...

. With this, his government became the first and only to resign in the history of communist Yugoslavia. Mikulić left office with Yugoslavia in 21 billion

USD The United States dollar (symbol: $; currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introduced the U.S. dollar at par with the Spanish silver dollar, divided it int ...

of debt to Western countries. He was replaced by Ante Marković on 16 March 1989.

Siege of Sarajevo and death

Mikulić resolutely refused to leave besieged Sarajevo, although his health was quite compromised at the time. In the 1990s, in an interview for Nedeljna Dalmacija he stated, that in the event of the

breakup of Yugoslavia After a period of political and economic crisis in the 1980s, the constituent republics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia split apart in the early 1990s. Unresolved issues from the breakup caused a series of inter-ethnic Yugoslav ...

, he would remain with those "who choose a sovereign and independent Bosnia and Herzegovina and its territorial integrity within the existing borders." Mikulić received the

last rites The last rites, also known as the Commendation of the Dying, are the last prayers and ministrations given to an individual of Christian faith, when possible, shortly before death. The Commendation of the Dying is practiced in liturgical Chri ...

shortly before his death. He died quietly on 12 April 1994 during the siege of Sarajevo. Mikulić was buried in the

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

cemetery ''Sv. Josip'' in Sarajevo.Groblje „SV. JOSIP“

Legacy

Mikulić was one of the leading politicians in

during the communist rule in the former

. He contributed to underdeveloped Bosnia and Herzegovina post-WWII industrial and economic development like no other politician and was main force behind its rise as equal among the Republics at the Federal table. He maintained that Bosnia and Herzegovina cultural development is as important as economic progress and worked to accomplish that goal. He was unwavering in his conviction that the Bosniaks of Bosnia and Herzegovina, at the time (m)uslims, must get equal status as a people both in Bosnia and in Yugoslavia, and that, therefore, their national distinctiveness and nationhood in relation to other nations must be recognized in full. He was fierce critic of nationalism and any outside interference with Bosnia internal matters. However, memory and recognition in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Sarajevo rarely goes beyond annual commemoration of his death in media.

Sarajevo Winter Olympics

Before moving from the political scene in 1989, Mikulić was a leading official in the organizing committee of the Sarajevo 1984 Winter Olympic Games, and the person most responsible in getting the Games to the city, despite resistance from other Yugoslav political centers and media.

References

Bibliography

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External links