Aleksandar Rankovi: Biography

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Aleksandar Rankovi Leka !"#$ %

&inis'er o( 'he )n'ernal A((airs o( *+goslavia )n o((i,e January 1946 July 1966 -residen' Josip Broz Tito -re,eded .y Office established /hie( o( 012A )n o((i,e 1 !ay 1944 !arch 1946 3i,e -residen' o( 'he -eople4s Asse5.ly o( 'he -R 6er.ia )n o((i,e "o#em$er 1944 January 1946 -ersonal de'ails %& "o#em$er 19'9 Born (ra)e#ac, *in+dom of ,er$ia %' -u+ust 19& .a+ed / 0 7ied (u$ro#nik, ,1 2roatia, ,F1 3u+osla#ia Res'ing pla,e Bel+rade, ,er$ia 2a'ionali'y ,er$ -oli'i,al par'y 2ommunist 4arty of 3u+osla#ia 6po+se8s9 -n5a 1anko#i6 0,,+pa'ion 4olitician, soldier, 7orker &ili'ary servi,e

2i,kna5e8s9 Allegian,e 6ervi,e:.ran,h *ears o( servi,e Rank Ba''les:;ars A;ards

!arko, 8eka 3u+osla#ia 3u+osla# 4artisans 19411949 2olonel +eneral World War :: 3u+osla# Front ;rder of the 4eople<s =ero ;rder of the =ero of ,ocialist 8a$our ;rder of "ational 8i$eration

Aleksandar Rankovi <Leka< .,er$ian 2yrillic> ? 19'919& 0 7as a 3u+osla# communist of ,er$ian ori+in considered to $e the third most po7erful man in 3u+osla#ia after Josip Broz Tito and @d#ard *ardelABC1D 1anko#i6 7as a proponent of a centralized 3u+osla#ia and opposed efforts that promoted decentralization that he deemed to $e a+ainst the interests of ,er$ unity?C%D he ran *oso#o as a police stateC D and made ,er$s dominant in *oso#o<s nomenklaturaBC%D 1anko#i6 supported a hardline approach a+ainst -l$anians in *oso#o 7ho 7ere commonly suspected of pursuin+ seditious acti#itiesBC4DC9D The popularity of 1anko#i6<s nationalistic policies in ,er$ia $ecame apparent at 1anko#i6<s funeral in ,er$ia in 19& 7here lar+e num$ers of people attended the funeral and many considered 1anko#i6 a ,er$ian EnationalE leaderBC6D 1anko#i6<s policies ha#e $een percei#ed as the $asis of the ,er$ian nationalist a+enda of ,lo$odan !iloFe#i6BC6D

/on'en's

1 @arly life % 4reG7ar acti#ity 8ater career 4 ,ee also 9 1eferences

=arly li(e
1anko#i6 7as $orn in the #illa+e of (ra)e#ac near ;$reno#ac in the *in+dom of ,er$iaB Born into a poor family, 1anko#i6 lost his father at a youn+ a+eB =e attended hi+h school in his hometo7nB -s 7ith many poor children, he 7ent to Bel+rade to 7orkB =ard li#in+ conditions influenced him to Aoin the 7orkers< mo#ementB =e 7as also influenced $y his collea+ues 7ho, at the time 7hen the 2ommunist 4arty 7as $anned, $rou+ht communist ma+azines and literature 7ith them, 7hich 7ere read $y 1anko#i6B -t a+e 19 he Aoined the unionBCclarification neededD :n 19%/ he met his future 7ife -n5a, and year later he Aoined the 2ommunist 4arty of 3u+osla#iaB ,oon he 7as named ,ecretaryG Heneral of the 8ea+ue of 2ommunists of 3outh of 3u+osla#ia .,*;J0 in Bel+radeB

-re>;ar a,'ivi'y

:n 19%& 7hen he $ecome mem$er of the 2ommunist 4arty, 1anko#i6 7as named ,ecretary of the 1e+ional 2ommittee of the ,*;J of ,er$iaB The January 6th (ictatorship didn<t influence his political acti#ityB -s leader of the 1e+ional 2ommittee of ,*;J he pu$lished a flyer 7hich 7as distri$uted in Bel+rade and IemunB (urin+ the time 7hen flyers 7ere $ein+ printed, one of his associates 7as arrested and soon 1anko#i6 7as disco#ered $y the policeB =e 7as captured in Bel+rade in an ille+al apartmentB 1anko#i6<s trial 7as one of the first trials after the declaration of *in+ -leJander<s dictatorshipB =e 7as sentenced for 6 years and he spent his punishment in prisons in ,remska !itro#ica and 8epo+la#aB (urin+ his imprisonment he spread communist a+enda amon+ youn+er prisonersB :n prison, he or+anized attacks on the police $y political prisonersB =e 7as released at the $e+innin+ of 19 9 and after the release he 7as enlisted to the armyB -fter the military ser#ice he 7orked for the 7orkers< mo#ement in Bel+radeB Throu+h the unions he re#i#ed acti#ity of the 2ommunist 4artyB :n 19 6 he $ecome mem$er of the 1e+ional 2ommittee of ,er$ia and in 19 / mem$er of the 4olit$uro of the 2entral 2ommittee of the 2ommunist 4artyB :n January 19 9 he started to act ille+ally under codename E!arkoEB :n !ay 19 9 1anko#i6 participated in the consultations of communists of 3u+osla#ia in (ra#a Bano#ina in Kmarna Hora, and later he participated on the 9th 2onference of *4J held in Ia+re$B

La'er ,areer
1anko#i6 7as a mem$er of the 4olit$uro from 194'B 1anko#i6 7as captured and tortured $y the Herman Hestapo in 1941 $ut 7as later rescued in a darin+ raid $y 3u+osla# 4artisansBC/D =is 7ife and mother 7ere killed $y the Hestapo durin+ the 7arBC&D 1anko#i6 ser#ed on the ,upreme ,taff throu+hout the 7arB =e 7as named a E4eople<s =eroE for his ser#ices durin+ World War ::B -fter the 7ar, 1anko#i6 $ecame minister of the interior and chief the military intelli+ence a+ency ;I"-B =e fell from po7er in 1966, ostensi$ly for a$usin+ his authority $y $u++in+ the sleepin+ Luarters of 4resident Josip Broz TitoB =e 7as eJpelled from the ,*J the same yearBC/D =is fall from po7er marked the $e+innin+ of the end of a centralized po7er structure of the 8ea+ue of 2ommunists of 3u+osla#ia o#er the country and the social and political separatist and autonomist mo#ements that 7ould culminate in the 2roatian ,prin+ and the ne7ly deGcentralized 3u+osla#ia that emer+ed from the 19/1 constitutional reforms and later the 19/4 2onstitutionBC9D

1anko#i6<s +ra#e in Bel+rade 1anko#i6 spent his remainin+ years in a political eJile of sorts in (u$ro#nik until his death in 19& B =e 7as $uried in Bel+rade 7ith some ',''' ,er$s spontaneously sho7in+ up for his funeral at the Bel+rade<s "e7 2emetery despite the e#ent $ein+ i+nored $y the ti+htlyGcontrolled media in the countryB By the time of his death 1anko#i6 had come to sym$olize ,er$ian political and national interests as 7ell as to em$ody 7hat many ,er$s at the time sa7 to $e their repu$lic<s 7eakened position 7ithin communist 3u+osla#iaB

Re(eren,es
"otes
1B

%B
B 4B 9B

6B /B
&B

?+5p +p @ -leksandar 1anko#ic G 4olitical 4rofile of - 3u+osla# E,talinistE M Jump up to> a b !elissa *atherine Boko#oy, Jill -B :r#ine, 2arol ,B 8illyB ,tateGsociety relations in 3u+osla#ia, 1949199%B ,cranton, 4ennsyl#ania, N,-> 4al+ra#e !acmillan, 199/B 4pB %99B ?+5p +p @ JudahB The SerbsB 3ale Nni#ersity 4ressB :,B" 9/&G'G ''G19&%6G/B ?+5p +p @ :ndependent :nternational 2ommission on *oso#oB The Kosovo report: conflict, international response, lessons learned B "e7 3ork, "e7 3ork, N,-> ;Jford Nni#ersity 4ress, %'''B 4pB 9B ?+5p +p @ Judah, Tim .%''&0B Kosovo : what everyone needs to knowB "e7 3ork> ;Jford Nni#ersity 4ressB ppB 919%B :,B" 9/&G'G19G9 / 49G9B M Jump up to> a b 8enard JB 2ohenB Serpent in the bosom: the rise and fall of Slobodan MiloeviB Boulder, 2olorado, N,-> West#ie7 4ress, %''%B 4pB 9&B M Jump up to> a b E-leksandar 1anko#i6B "arodni heroA ili domaci izdaAnikBE .in ,er$ian0B 3u+osla#ia TimesB 1 ;cto$er %'1%B 1etrie#ed & (ecem$er %'1 B ?+5p +p @ Hunther, John .19610B Inside !rope TodayB "e7 TodayB "e7 3ork> =arper O BrothersB pB 9'B 822" 61G9/'6