DEVELOPMENT OF SCIENCE IN YUGOSLAVIA AFTER THE SECOND WORLD WAR
Science had a very important role in the plans of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia after the Second World War and its coming to power. In accordance with its unlimited power, the Party had full control over defining and implementing science policy and over the work of scientific institutions and scientists. The control was carried out through state bodies and omnipotent Party Agitprop apparatus. Therefore, the autonomy of scientific institutions and scientists was completely repressed with universities, academies of sciences and institutes completely adapted to a new political and socio-economic system. To the end of the ‘40s, science policy in Yugoslavia was based on Soviet influences and models. But, after the 1948 Yugoslav-Soviet conflict, crucial changes occurred, soviet models were abandoned and scientific ties with the Soviet Union were temporarily severed. Since the beginning of the ‘50s, the Yugoslav scientific life witnessed some decentralization and liberalization, but still in the frames of unquestionable dominance of the Communist Party and its ideology. In that period, rapid development of science began, which led to more institutions, experts and equipment. During the ‘50s, an intensive development of international cooperation also started. In time, that cooperation became more and more intensive and oriented both to the East and the West, as well as to the undeveloped Asian and African countries. Since the ‘50s, self-management was implemented in Yugoslav scientific institutions. Also, decentralisation of the federal authorities’ competences in the management of science was accelerated and those competences were gradually transferred to the republics and provinces, especially after the 1974 Constitution. At the same time, the Associated Work Law from 1976 subjected the scientific work to the complicated and inefficient self-managing system. Despite new results and ambitions in the ‘80s, this system significantly slowed down development of science, aided by political and economic crisis, weakening of the state and approximation of its collapse.
