THE OFFICE OF HEAD OF STATE IN SERBIA AND IN YUGOSLAVIA

Responsibility for the main initiatives in the Yugoslav crisis may be attributed to the Republic's Presidency, but the behaviour of those holding office, the nature of their office, and the decisive influence exerted upon it by the Republics, have indubitably contributed to the inability of this body to find an effective solution to the crisis. The institution of head of State in Yugoslavia was not only novel, but also, and above all, incompatible with the concept of federal organization. The terms of reference of the Yugoslav presidency, the method by which its members are elected, and its relations with the national assembly give it, in effect, a dominant position, which is totally opposed to the principle of government by assembly established by the Yugoslav Constitution, but at the same time render it powerless. From another point of constitutional recognition of wide powers accorded to the head of State carries the risk of an excessive personalization of power.