Central National Committee (Chetniks)

The Central National Committee of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia,[1] known also by its Yugoslav abbreviation CNK (Serbian: Централни Национални Комитет Краљевине Југославије),[2] was an advisory body of the Yugoslav Army in the Fatherland (commonly known as the Chetniks) established during WWII in August 1941 by the group of political representatives of all prewar opposition parties.

Central National Committee of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia

Централни Национални Комитет Краљевине Југославије
History
FoundedAugust or September 1941
DisbandedApril 1945
Preceded byDragiša Vasić
Leadership
Vice President
Mustafa Mulalić (since beginning of 1943)
Secretary of the Executive Board
Đura Đurović
Motto
For Democracy, Against All Dictatorships

Background

After the short April War in 1941, Axis forces swiftly occupied and destroyed the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. A small group of Yugoslav officers, led by Draža Mihailović, did not accept the capitulation of the Yugoslav Army and organized resistance in their headquarters at Ravna Gora. As soon as the news about this resistance movement reached Belgrade, many intellectuals and members of non-Communist political parties supported it.[3] This group became the nucleus of CNK, which coordinated their activities with the headquarters.[3]

Establishment

The CNK was established at the end of August 1941 as a consultative body.[4] According to some sources, the CNK was established in September 1941.[5]

The Chetniks established Mountain Staff No. 1 and Central National Committee, forming the ideological substance of the Chetnik movement - For Democracy, Against All Dictatorships - their aim for the war.[6] The CNK was composed of the political representatives of all prewar opposition parties.[6]

Its Executive Board members were Dragiša Vasić, Mladen Mlađa Žujović, and Stevan Moljević.[7] After some time, regional committees were established in Montenegro (Serbian: Комитет црногорских националиста) and in Split. (Serbian: Српски национални комитет) Although they supported Mihajlović, they were not directly subordinated to the CNK.[8]

Activities

The CNK did not have particular importance.[9] Is Executive Board was active for the first two years only.[4] At the beginning of 1943 the CNK was expanded and joined by Aleksandar Aksentijević, Đuro Đurović, Mustafa Mulalić and Đuro Vilović.[10]

The CNK began with resistance to Axis occupying forces.[11]

Photo of Đura Đurović, secretary of the Executive Board of CNK and editor of its official organ "Glas Jugoslavije"

According to the decisions of the Ba Congress, the CNK was designated to acquire political responsibility and cooperate with Allies until liberation from Fascists and Communists and with the government of the coming Yugoslav Federation composed of Serbia, Croatia and Slovenia.[12] The vice president of CNK was Mustafa Mulalić. He hoped to collect all Muslim sympathizers of the Yugoslav Federation as projected by the Chetniks.[13]

The official organ of the CNK was Glas Yugoslavije, initiated on 10 July 1944.[14] It was edited by the Executive Board of the CNK, mainly by Dr. Đura Đurović who was board's secretary between June and September[15] 1944.[14]

Final days

Facing the entrance of pro-Partisan Communist Red Army troops into Axis occupied Yugoslavia the CNK decided to follow advice from the US to gather their forces in Banja Luka and await the invasion of Allied forces on Dalmatian coast and their infiltration into Bosnia and other parts of Yugoslavia. On 21 February 1945, Pavle Đurišić organized a conference and the group decided to retreat to Slovenia until more a favourable political situation for their national cause was reached, inviting Mihailović and CNK to follow their conclusions.[16] In the absence of a reply from Mihailović, on 1 March 1945 Đurišić organized a new conference of the "National Committee of Higher Military Commanders and Intellectuals from Montenegro, Boka and Old Ras" that reached the same conclusions.[16] Mihailović and CNK rejected decisions of this conference and condemned Đurišić.[17]

Some members of the CNK, including its president Dragiša Vasić, joined Đurišić and began their journey toward Slovenia, contrary to the decisions of Mihailović. After the Battle of Lijevče Field they were all captured and together with Đurišić and other captured Chetnik officers taken to Jasenovac death camp where they were all killed in April 1945.[18]

Consequences

Many authors emphasize that Stevan Moljević and his work Homogeneous Serbia played a crucial role in preparation of a coherent set of Chetnik war objectives with establishment of the Greater Serbia as one of the most important Chetnik war objectives. John R. Lampe pointed to the secondary status of the Central National Committee and Moljević's rise to prominence in this committee only in 1943, as significant details undercut the perception that Moljević's "Homogeneous Serbia" was the centerpiece of the coherent set of Chetnik war objectives.[19]

References
  1. Lees 2007, p. 183.
  2. Papadopolos 1974, p. 649: "„Veliki narodni kongres" odlučio je da se Centralni nacionalni komitet Kraljevine Jugoslavije proširi i da se pristupi ..."
  3. Čubrilović 1974, p. 522.
  4. Matić & Vesović 1995, p. 20.
  5. Latas & Dželebdžić 1979, p. 43: "По неким верзијама, до формирања овог комитета дошло је срединой августа, а по некима, у септембру 1941."
  6. Congress, United States. (1989). Congressional Record: Proceedings and Debates of the ... Congress. U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 5901.
  7. Vučković & Krstić 2001, p. 15.
  8. Recueil des travaux du Musée national. Muzej. 2007. p. 151.
  9. Milićević 2009, p. 66:" Додуше, постојао је, мада без већег значаја, Централни национални комитет као политичко тело још од августа 1941. године.
  10. Minić 1993, p. 191.
  11. Марковић 1998, p. 110:"Убрзо је Централни национални комитет, као политички одбор четничког покрета, у Београду почео са активностима на пружању отпора њемачком окупатору."
  12. Roberts, Valter (13 December 2013). "Черчилов избор – Броз!". Večernje Novosti. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
  13. Djela. Akademija. 1987. p. 130. Potpredsjednik Centralnog nacionalnog, komiteta ravnogorskog pokreta Mustafa Mulalić još je gajio nadu da bi među ...
  14. Matić & Vesović 1995, p. 73.
  15. Buchenau 2004, p. 77.
  16. Pajović, Željeznov & Božović 1987, p. 91.
  17. Kovačević 1993, p. 81: " ... извијестио да Врховна команда и Централни национални комитет не прихватају и осуђују самозвану Ђуришићеву ..."
  18. Čengić 1985, p. 183.
  19. Lampe 2000, p. 206.

Sources
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