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AVNOJ
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AVNOJ (Antifašisticko V(ij)ece Narodnog Oslobodenja Jugoslavije, standing for "Anti-Fascist Council of National Liberation of Yugoslavia") was the political umbrella organization for the national liberation councils of Yugoslavia. The AVNOJ was established on November 26, 1942 to administer terrorities under the Partisans' control. It was under the political leadership of the main resistance forces of Yugoslavia, during the Axis occupation of World War II.
r the Yugoslavian army capitulated on April 17, 1941, Yugoslavia was distributed between Germany, Italy, Bulgaria, Hungary and the newly formed puppet states: Independent State of Croatia , Independent State of Montenegro, Albanian Kingdom and Nedic Serbia.
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AVNOJ (Antifašisticko V(ij)ece Narodnog Oslobodenja Jugoslavije, standing for "Anti-Fascist Council of National Liberation of Yugoslavia") was the political umbrella organization for the national liberation councils of Yugoslavia. The AVNOJ was established on November 26, 1942 to administer terrorities under the Partisans' control. It was under the political leadership of the main resistance forces of Yugoslavia, during the Axis occupation of World War II.
1st AVNOJ meeting
After the Yugoslavian army capitulated on April 17, 1941, Yugoslavia was distributed between Germany, Italy, Bulgaria, Hungary and the newly formed puppet states: Independent State of Croatia , Independent State of Montenegro, Albanian Kingdom and Nedic Serbia. Opposition to these occupation regimes caused the formation of resistance movements, resulting in the Communist Party of Yugoslavia (CPY), then only active in the underground but fast gaining popularity, assuming the role of leading the forces in the Yugoslavian resistance. The CPY as an organisation comprised people from, and drew support from, the whole of Yugoslavia; as such, it represented a single Yugoslav identity.
On November 26, 1942, the Partisan leaders of Yugoslavia convened the first AVNOJ meeting at Bihac, in the northwest of Bosnia, in the hope of gaining political legitimacy. Comprising a committee of both the communist and non-communist Partisan representatives, under Josip Broz Tito, AVNOJ proclaimed support for:
- democracy;
- the rights of ethnic minorities;
- the inviolability of private property; and
- freedom of individual economic initiative for the different groups.
In January 1943, Germany mounted a fourth large-scale anti-partisan offensive to strengthen its control of Yugoslavia by destroying the central command of the Partisan movement - the Central Committee of the CPY - and the primary Partisan hospital. The Partisans, outnumbered and engaged in major battles with the Chetnik formations of Colonel Draža Mihajlovic, Ustasha militias and the combined German and Italian regular forces, were steadily forced into retreat until an elaborate deception plan allowed the Partisans to escape their pursuers. Despite the tactical defeat and losses in men and material incurred, the Partisan central command remained intact and the hospital in safety, which in time would allow for the continuation of future operations. All the major strategic offensive goals of the Axis and their collaborators had been thwarted.
In May, German, Italian, Bulgarian, and Croatian troops launched a fifth concerted offensive against the Partisans in southeastern Bosnia, near the Sutjeska river. Again facing superior enemy numbers and potential encirclement, the Partisans escaped captivity but not without costs. However, the fact that after their successful breakout the Partisans were still able to mount major counteroffensives proved to be a turning point in the battle for control of Yugoslavia. When Italy surrendered in September, the Partisans were further aided by captured Italian arms, the control of additional coastal territory, and the shipment of supplies from the Allies in Italy.
2nd AVNOJ meeting
In its second AVNOJ conference in the Bosnian town of Jajce, from November 21 to November 29, 1943, Tito declared AVNOJ to be the superior executive authority. The decisions and the resolutions of the second AVNOJ conference were:
- to create a federal Yugoslavia, based on the right of self-determination of nations, in which the southern Slavic peoples (Serbs, Croats, Slovenes, Montenegrins and Macedonians) who would live in six constituent republics with equal rights;
- to stress that even during the War of National Liberation there had been established anti-fascist councils of the national liberation of Yugoslav lands for Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sandžak, Macedonia, and Montenegro and the Bay of Kotor as the organisations of the people's administration of the land;
- to elect the National Committee of the Liberation of Yugoslavia (Nacionalni komitet oslobodenja Jugoslavije, NKOJ), based in Jajce, to act as the temporary government;
- to name Tito, Marshal of Yugoslavia and Prime Minister;
- to revoke the Yugoslavian government-in-exile; and
- to deny King Petar II Karadordevic’s return to the country, until a popular referendum had been held on the status of the monarchy.
Stalin, the Soviet leader, was enraged when he found out that he was not being informed of the November meeting, and reportedly barred Tito from declaring AVNOJ as a provisional government. The Western Allies, however, were not alarmed, because they knew that the Partisans were the only Yugoslav resistance group actively fighting the Germans.
In December 1943, Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin decided to support the Partisans. The United Kingdom joined a month later, and stopped supplying the Chetniks. The first Soviet mission arrived at Partisan headquarters, shortly thereafter. The United States kept a military mission with Mihajlovic to encourage continued Chetnik aid for downed American fliers.
In May 1944, German airborne forces attacked Tito's headquarters in Drvar, nearly capturing him. Tito fled to Italy, and established a new headquarters on the Adriatic island of Vis. After throwing its full support to the Partisans, Britain worked to reconcile Tito and Petar. At Britain's urging, Petar agreed to remain outside Yugoslavia, and in September, summoned all Yugoslavs to back the Partisans.
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