Osman Kulenović (15 December 1889 – 7 June 1947) was a Yugoslav politician and lawyer, most notable for serving as the Vice President of the

Government of the Independent State of Croatia The Croatian State Government () was the government of the Independent State of Croatia The Independent State of Croatia (, NDH) was a World War II–era puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Fascist Italy. It was e ...

in 1941.

Early life

Osman Kulenović was born to a wealthy

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 ...

family in Kulen Vakuf, present-day

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 ...

. When he entered 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 ...

he joined the

Party of Rights The Party of Rights () was a Croatian nationalism, Croatian nationalist political party in Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia and later in Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. It was founded in 1861 by Ante Starčević and Eugen Kvaternik, two influ ...

. During Austrian-Hungarian rule he was among the younger representatives in the Croatian ''Sabor''. His colleague was

Ante Pavelić Ante Pavelić (; 14 July 1889 – 28 December 1959) was a Croatian politician who founded and headed the fascist ultranationalist organization known as the Ustaše in 1929 and was dictator of the Independent State of Croatia (NDH), a fasc ...

, the future '' Poglavnik'' of the

Independent State of Croatia The Independent State of Croatia (, NDH) was a World War II–era puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Fascist Italy. It was established in parts of Axis occupation of Yugoslavia, occupied Yugoslavia on 10 April 1941, ...

. Kulenović graduated from the Faculty of Law,

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (, ) is a public university, public research university in Vienna, Austria. Founded by Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria, Duke Rudolph IV in 1365, it is the oldest university in the German-speaking world and among the largest ...

in 1917, where he gained his Ph.D. as well. At the beginning of the 1920s he was the municipality president of

Kotor Varoš Kotor Varoš ( sr-cyrl, Котор Варош) is a town and municipality in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. As of 2013 census, the municipality has a population of 19,710 inhabitants, while the town of Kotor Varoš has a population o ...

, but due to his Croatian nationalist views, he was removed from the office. In 1923, after he was removed from the municipal post, he worked as a lawyer in

Bihać Bihać 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 (Sava), Una in northwestern Bosnia and Herzegovina, in th ...

Independent State of Croatia

After the proclamation of the Independent State of Croatia (NDH) in April 1941, Pavelić invited Kulenović to

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 ...

and named him vice president of the

on 16 April. Soon

Banja Luka Banja Luka ( sr-Cyrl, Бања Лука, ) or Banjaluka ( sr-Cyrl, Бањалука, ) is the List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, second largest city in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the largest city in Republika Srpska. Banja Luka is the tr ...

and

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 ...

became important political centres of the NDH, alongside Zagreb. Pavelić even considered moving several ministries to Banja Luka. As part of this policy, the vice presidency moved to Banja Luka, where Kulenović continued to work. As vice president, Kulenović visited towns and moved among the people. He informed Pavelić about the atrocities committed against the

Serb The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are a South Slavic ethnic group native to Southeastern Europe who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history, and language. They primarily live in Serbia, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia ...

population. After three months working for the government, Kulenović tendered his resignation, which Pavelić accepted only when he named Osman's brother, Džafer, to the post. In November, the seat of the vice presidency was returned to Zagreb. Osman Kulenović was part of the Croatian delegation that went to Rome to sign the Treaty of Rome in which Croatia ceded large parts of its coast to Italy. In November 1941 Kulenović was named advisor and was assigned to the Foreign Ministry. In 1943 he greeted the Mufti of Jerusalem,

Amin al-Husseini Mohammed Amin al-Husseini (; 4 July 1974) was a Palestinian Arab nationalist and Muslim leader in Mandatory Palestine. was the scion of the family of Jerusalemite Arab nobles, who trace their origins to the Islamic prophet Muhammad. Hussein ...

, after which he went to retirement, and lived in Zagreb until the end of the war. On 6 May 1945, he moved with rest of the officials towards Austria. He surrendered to the British authorities and was detained in a prison camp. On 10 October 1946, the British extradited him to the Yugoslav authorities which convicted him and other high-ranking NDH officials including

Slavko Kvaternik Slavko Kvaternik (25 August 1878 – 7 June 1947) was a Croatian military general and politician who was one of the founders of the ultranationalist Ustaše movement. Kvaternik was military commander and Minister of the Armed Forces ('' Domobrans ...

on 7 June 1947. Kulenović was executed on the same day.

References

;Citations ;Bibliography * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kulenovic, Osman 1889 births 1947 deaths Politicians from Bihać People from the Condominium of Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina Muslims Yugoslav Muslim Organization politicians Bosnian Muslim Ustaše Bosnian Muslim collaborators with Fascist Italy Executed Croatian collaborators with Fascist Italy Executed Croatian collaborators with Nazi Germany Executed Bosnian Muslim collaborators with Nazi Germany