Velibor Jonić
Velibor Jonić | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Commissioner of Education of the Commissioner Government | |
| In office 10 July 1941 – 29 August 1941 | |
| Preceded by | Risto Jojić |
| Succeeded by | Miloš Trivunac |
| Minister of Education of the Government of National Salvation | |
| In office 7 October 1941 – October 1944 | |
| Prime Minister | Milan Nedić |
| Preceded by | Miloš Trivunac |
| Succeeded by | Office abolished |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 12 February 1892 FPR Yugoslavia |
| Cause of death | Execution by firing squad |
| Political party | Zbor |
| Children | 1 |
| Profession | Teacher |
Velibor Jonić (
Early life
Velibor Jonić was born on 12 February 1892 in Krnjevo, Kingdom of Serbia to Krsta and Sofia Jonić (née Veljković). Before World War II, he taught at the Military Academy in Belgrade and worked as a journalist.[1] He was married and had one child.[1] He also worked as a teacher in the royal court.[2]
Jonić joined the Yugoslav National Movement (Zbor) before the war. The Zbor, established in 1935, was presided by right-wing politician Dimitrije Ljotić, who had connections to the royal court and served a short stint as Minister of Justice in 1931. Jonić served as its secretary-general.[3] The party was declared illegal upon establishment, since virtually all political parties in Yugoslavia had been banned since the declaration of King Alexander's dictatorship in 1929. After a petition by Jonić and attorney Milan Aćimović, the Ministry of the Interior eventually conceded and recognized Zbor as an official political party.[4] The organization received German financial aid.[4] It had limited support stemming from the fact that radical right-wing sentiment was not strong amongst the Serbian population, due to associating it with Germany. Being extremely anti-German, the majority of ethnic Serbs rejected fascist and Nazi ideas outright.[5]
World War II
Jonić was appointed Commissioner of Education within the Commissioner Government on 10 July.[6][7] With his encouragement, 545 prominent Serbs signed the Appeal to the Serbian Nation on 13 August and called for collaboration with Germany.[8] On 29 August, the Germans put Milan Nedić in charge of the Serbian puppet administration.[9] Jonić became Minister of Education on 7 October,[1] having replaced Miloš Trivunac.[9] As Minister of Education, he was given jurisdiction over the Serbian Orthodox Church. He attempted to win the church over to collaboration with the Germans, with little success.[10] He was the chief editor of the weekly Srpski narod (1943–44).
On 28 August 1944, Nedić appointed Jonić to manage the evacuation of the Serbian puppet government to
Notes
- ^ a b c Mihailović 1946, p. 506.
- ^ Cohen 1996, p. 17.
- ^ Cohen 1996, pp. 14–15.
- ^ a b Cohen 1996, p. 15.
- ^ Pribičević 1999, p. 194.
- ^ Cohen 1996, p. 154.
- ^ Mihailović 1946, p. 534.
- ^ Israeli 2013, pp. 16–17.
- ^ a b Tomasevich 2001, p. 179.
- ^ Byford 2006, p. 492.
- ^ Israeli 2013, p. 19.
- ^ Cohen 1996, p. 59.
- ^ Tomasevich 1975, pp. 461–462.
References
- Byford, Jovan (2006). "Serbian Orthodox Church". In Blamires, Cyprian; Jackson, Paul (eds.). World Fascism: A Historical Encyclopedia. Vol. 1. ISBN 978-1-57607-940-9.
- Cohen, Philip J. (1996). Serbia's Secret War: Propaganda and the Deceit of History. ISBN 978-0-89096-760-7.
- ISBN 978-1-4128-4975-3.
- Mihailović, Draža (1946). The Trial of Dragoljub–Draža Mihailović. Belgrade: Documentary Publications.
- Pribičević, Ognjen (1999). "The Serbian Radical Right". In Ramet, Sabrina P. (ed.). The Radical Right in Central and Eastern Europe Since 1989. ISBN 978-0-271-04379-1.
- ISBN 978-0-8047-0857-9.
- Tomasevich, Jozo (2001). War and Revolution in Yugoslavia, 1941–1945: Occupation and Collaboration. ISBN 978-0-8047-3615-2.
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