Vojislav Koštunica
Vojislav Kostunica (? Cyrillic Војислав Коштуница, pronunciation of the name / i; born March 24, 1944 in Belgrade ) is a Serbian politician, lawyer and chairman of the Democratic Party of Serbia.
From 7 October 2000 to 7 March 2003, he was President of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia from 2004 to 2008 and Prime Minister of Serbia.
Life
Kostunica comes from a Belgrade lawyer family, his father Jovan Kostunica was a judge in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. The family name Kostunica derives from the Serbian village in the district Koštunići Gornji Milanovac, from which his great-grandfather Jovan Damjanović came. This was an adviser to the Serbian prince Miloš Obrenović legendary and was henceforth called by this according to his place of origin Koštunići Kostunica.
Vojislav Kostunica finished his studies at the Belgrade Law Faculty with a PhD and then became an assistant at the University of Belgrade. Later he worked at the Belgrade Institute of Social Sciences on party pluralism and engaged in a dissident Committee on the freedom of expression. In 1974, Vojislav Kostunica was dismissed for political reasons as a university lecturer, as he had signed a declaration, which was directed against the then neuverabschiedete Yugoslav Constitution and laid down in it administrative detachment of Kosovo from the former republic of Serbia. Kostunica never been part of the Yugoslav Communist Party. In 1989 he scored with Zoran Djindjic of the founders of the Democratic Party (DS). In 1990 he was elected to the Serbian Parliament. In 1992 he founded the Democratic Party of Serbia ( DSS). Crucial for the elimination of the DSS from the DS was propagated by Kostunica support for the Bosnian Serbs under Radovan Karadzic during the civil war in Bosnia from 1992 to 1995.
In 2000 he was nominated for the presidential and parliamentary elections on 24 September 2000 as the candidate of the electoral alliance of 18 parties formed Democratic Opposition of Serbia ( DOS). After the election declared official government bodies Kostunica, with 48.22 percent of votes for the election winner. But as he had not obtained an absolute majority, the election commission ruled next for October 8, a runoff between him and incumbent Milošević at what was considered by the DOS as electoral fraud. After days of arguments over the election was to mass protests, a general strike and come to the cancellation of the election results. The regime of Slobodan Milošević was overthrown on 5 October 2000 and celebrated Kostunica as president-elect by a peaceful popular uprising. However, Kostunica clarified: " Never Milosevic is extradited to The Hague! " He greeted his fellow countrymen with the words: " Good evening., Liberated Serbia - today we make history "
In August 2001, it came to a break with the Democratic DOS alliance, especially with the Party, Zoran Djindjic, the DS because Kostunica these accused actively cooperate with criminal elements, but also because of the extradition of Serbian citizens abroad, which the Serbian legislation prohibits, but nevertheless in the case Milošević and other cases was carried out under pressure of the DS and the later members of the LDP.
As President he was in 2003 by his successor, Svetozar Marović ( DPS ) replaced, President of Serbia is Boris Tadić since July 2004 (DS). Kostunica has since Prime Minister of Serbia in a coalition with Tadić's DS. After the declaration of independence of Kosovo in February 2008 and their recognition by the majority of EU countries Kostunica moved away from the common course of rapprochement between Serbia and the European Union and called for a de facto termination of the relationship. This loaded the coalition with the still Western-oriented DS so much that Kostunica 8 March 2008 announced his resignation. At a press conference he said he no longer believe in a future government coalition, as the party Tadić's not seriously striving for a return of Kosovo into Serbia Association. On 7 July 2008, he handed the mandate to his successor Mirko Cvetković.
Family
Kostunica is married to the lawyer Zorica Radovic.
Swell
- Http://www.srbija.gov.rs/vlada/predsednik.php
- Http://www.dss.org.yu/dss/predsednik.php