Raif Dizdarević

Raif Dizdarević (born 9 December 1926) is a Bosnian politician who served as Yugoslavia's first Bosniak president of the Presidency from 1988 to 1989. He participated in the armed resistance as a Yugoslav Partisan during World War II. Didzarević also served as President of the Presidency of SR Bosnia and Herzegovina and as Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Raif Dizdarević
10th President of the Presidency of Yugoslavia
In office
15 May 1988 – 15 May 1989
Prime MinisterBranko Mikulić
Ante Marković
Preceded byLazar Mojsov
Succeeded byJanez Drnovšek
4th Member of the Presidency of Yugoslavia for SR Bosnia and Herzegovina
In office
31 December 1987 – 15 May 1989
Preceded byMato Andrić (Acting member)
Hamdija Pozderac (Member)
Succeeded byBogić Bogićević
Minister of Foreign Affairs
In office
15 May 1984 – 30 December 1987
Prime MinisterMilka Planinc
Branko Mikulić
Preceded byLazar Mojsov
Succeeded byBudimir Lončar
2nd President of the Presidency of SR Bosnia and Herzegovina
In office
April 1978 – April 1982
Prime MinisterMilanko Renovica
Preceded byRatomir Dugonjić
Succeeded byBranko Mikulić
Personal details
Born (1926-12-09) 9 December 1926
Fojnica, Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes
Political partyLeague of Communists of Yugoslavia (1945–1991)

Early life

Dizdarević was born into a Bosniak Muslim family in 1926,[1] but became and remained an atheist after entering school.[2]

Political career
Dizdarević in 1973

After the war, as a member of the Communist Party, Dizdarević was elevated into high political functions. From 1945, he was a member of the State Security Administration. As a diplomat, he served in embassies in Bulgaria (1951–1954), the Soviet Union (1956–1959), and Czechoslovakia (1963–1967).[3]

Dizdarević was an assistant Federal Secretary of Foreign Affairs, with Miloš Minić being the Minister. From April 1978 until April 1982, he was the President of the Presidency of SR Bosnia and Herzegovina, after which he served as President of the Federal Assembly of Yugoslavia.[3]

From 15 May 1984 until 30 December 1987, Dizdarević was the Minister of Foreign Affairs.[3] On 15 May 1988, he became President of the Presidency of Yugoslavia, following the resignation of Hamdija Pozderac. During Dizdarević's time as head of state, Yugoslavia had a foreign debt of over US$21 billion and an annual inflation rate of 217 percent.[4] In March 1989, Dizdarević had to cancel a foreign trip to Brazil, Uruguay and Senegal amid unrest in the Albanian-majority province of Kosovo.[5]

Later life

Dizdarević, who tried to keep the Yugoslav federation together, lost his political influence with the start of the Yugoslav Wars. Later he lived in Sarajevo and published his memoirs. He published a memoir book Od smrti Tita do smrti Jugoslavije ("From the death of Tito to the death of Yugoslavia", ISBN 978-9958-10275-2) and a book of memories on events and personalities Vrijeme koje se pamti' ("Times to be remembered", ISBN 9958-703-81-5).

His son Predrag lives in the United States, while his daughter Jasminka lives in Belgrade, Serbia.[6] His nephew was journalist, diplomat, and activist Srđan Dizdarević, who died in 2016.

References
  1. New Times. Newspaper "Trud,". 1984. ISSN 0206-1473. Retrieved 7 January 2015.
  2. Jurilj, Zdenko; Bubalo, Robert (9 December 2005). "Dizdarević: Milošević je trebao biti premijer SFRJ". Večernji list.
  3. Ninoslav Kopač (2012). Svjedok histerije. Zagreb: Serb Democratic Forum. p. 240. ISBN 978-953-57313-2-0.
  4. "Yugoslavia's President Says Crisis Harms the Country's Reputation". select.nytimes.com. 19 October 1988. Retrieved 7 January 2015.
  5. Yugoslav crisis hits president's foreign tour. The Glasgow Herald – 11 March 1989.
  6. "Znameniti Fojničani: Raif Dizdarević". fojnica.ba. Retrieved 7 January 2015.
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