Zoran Djindjic
Zoran Djindjic
Zoran Djindjic, Zoran Ðinđić or in Cyrillic Зоран Ђинђић, (August 1, 1952 - March 12, 2003) was Serbian Prime Minister, opposition politician and philosopher by profession.
Djindjic was born in Bosanski Šamac, Bosnia and took an interest in politics while a student at the University of Belgrade. His father Dragomir was officer of Yugoslavian army. A pro-reformist socialist, Djindjic was imprisoned for several months after he and other students from Croatia and Slovenia tried to establish a non-communist student organisation. Released from jail, he continued his studies in Germany under professor JÃÂürgen Habermas in Frankfurt. In 1979 he obtained a PhD in philosophy from the university of Konstanz. He spoke German with perfection. His English was moderate.
In 1989 Djindjic returned to Yugoslavia to take up a teaching post at Novi Sad University, and together with other Serb dissidents founded the Democratic Party. He became Chairman of the Executive Board of the party in 1990, and was elected to the Serb Parliament in the same year. After collapse of short-lived coalition "Zajedno" (Together) with Vuk Drašković and Vesna Pešić, Djindjic registered as separate candidate. After massive series of public protests about rigged elections, Djindjic became Mayor of Belgrade in 1996 - the first non-communist mayor to hold that post since the Second World War.
He played a prominent role in the Yugoslav Presidential elections of September 2000 and in the October 5, uprising that overthrew the Milosevic's regime, and then led the broad-based 18-party Democratic Opposition of Serbia coalition to an overwhelming victory at the Serbian elections of December 2000. He became Premier of Serbia on January 25, 2001. He played a key role in sending dictator Slobodan Milosevic to the UN War Crimes Tribunal in The Hague. Djindjic was sympathized from Western nations. He had ideological misunderstandings with federal president Vojislav Kostunica. He was in close relationship with Montenegrin president Milo Djukanovic.
He was assassinated in Belgrade on stairway of main Serbian government building on March 12, 2003, 12: 23 PM shot once in the chest, bullet penetrated his heart and killed him instantly. His bodyguard Milan Veruović was seriously wounded in stomach by another shot. Djindjic's Assassin police specialist Zvezdan Jovanović called Zveki, fired a bullet through sniper scope from nearby building window. Jovanovic, codenamed Snake, was born in 1965 in Pec, Kosovo. He had rank of lieutenant colonel and has been active in series of Serbian wars in 1990s.
According to the official government statement, Djindjic was not conscious and did not have a pulse upon arriving at the emergency ward. He had made many enemies for his pro-Western stance, reformist policies which had seen unemployment rise to over 30%, for arresting Milosevic, for relinquishing him to The Hague, and for clamping down on organized crime. Milorad Ulemek called Legija, an ex-Commander of the special police ordered Jovanovic to kill Djindjic. Vojislav Šešelj ultra-nationalist and Djindjic's foe, has been suspected to be behind the assassination as inspirer of crime. Legija was connected with the powerful Zemun clan of Serbian mafia, blamed for organizing the killing.
Natasa Micic, acting president of Serbia, declared a state of emergency immediately following the shooting. Zoran Zivkovic and were elected by the Serbian Democratic Party as Djindjic's successor. However after new parliament elections Boris Tadic was appointed as president of party.
Djindjic was married to Ružica and had two children with his wife. Daughter Jovana born in 1990 and son Luka born in 1992.
His solemn state procession and funeral on March 15, 2003 was attended by hundreds of thousands of ordinary people, including foreign delegations. Djindjic's death represents political and moral tragedy to millions of Serbs who saw in him statesman of hope who guaranteed peaceful coexistence with neighboring nations, integration to Europe and rest of world, economic prosperity and brighter future.