Milosevic: Portrait of a Tyrant [Hardcover]

Louise Branson (Author), Dusko Doder (Draft Writer)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 12, 1999

Who is Slobodan Milosevic?

Is he the next Saddam Hussein, the leader of a renegade nation who will continue to torment the United States for years to come? Or is he the next Moammar Qaddafi, an international outcast silenced for good by a resolute American bombing campaign?

The war in Kosovo in the spring of 1999 introduced many Americans to the man the newspapers have called "the butcher of the Balkans," but few understand the crucial role he has played and continues to play in the most troubled part of Europe. Directly or indirectly, Milosevic has waged war and instigated brutal ethnic cleansing in Croatia, Bosnia, and Kosovo, and he was indicted for war crimes in May 1999. Milosevic's rise to power, from lowly Serbian apparatchik to president of Yugoslavia, is a tale of intrigue, cynical manipulation, and deceit whose full dimensions have never been presented to the American public.

In this first full-length biography of the Yugoslav leader, veteran foreign correspondents Dusko Doder and Louise Branson paint a disturbing portrait of a cunning politician who has not shied from fomenting wars and double-crossing enemies and allies alike in his ruthless pursuit of power. Whereas most dictators encourage a cult of personality around themselves, Milosevic has been content to operate in the shadows, shunning publicity and allowing others to grab the limelight -- and then to take the heat when things go badly. Milosevic's secretive style, the authors show, emerged in response to a family history of depression (both of his parents committed suicide) and has served him well as he begins his second decade in power.

Doder and Branson introduce us to the key figures behindMilosevic's rise: his wife, Mirjana Markovic, who is often described (with justification) as a Serbian Lady Macbeth, and the Balkan and American politicians who learned, too late, about the costs of underestimating Milosevic. They also reveal how the United States refused to take the necessary action in 1992 to remove Milosevic from power without bloodshed -- not realizing that he uses such moments of weakness as opportunities to lull his opponents into traps, thereby paving the way for a new consolidation of power. Now, in the wake of the victory in Kosovo, it remains to be seen whether America will learn this lesson or whether we will allow this deeply troubled man to continue to pose a threat to European peace and security as the twenty-first century dawns.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

With the hardened realism that comes from years of journalism and a first-hand knowledge of the Balkan scene, Doder and Branson (coauthor of Gorbachev) have written a vivid and scathing biography of Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic. During the past decade of war and chaos in the former Yugoslavia, the central figure amid the devastation has been Milosevic, yet he has remained a mystery, "drawing a veil around his persona." In their masterful expos?, in which they charge Milosevic with causing the Balkan crises of the 1990s, Doder and Branson, a husband-and-wife team, draw a portrait of a man with "demons in his soul," filled with "the intoxication... of genuine popularity," who used that popularity to grab power. They take us from his youth in WWII and postwar Serbia, through his rise in Communist circles via crafty intrigues and blatant betrayal, and his cynical exploitation of Serb nationalism to gain power. Milosevic, the authors show, exercised that power with extreme cruelty, unleashing violent paramilitary groups on his enemies and ordering a gruesome beating of one of his political opponents, Vuk Draskovic. Doder and Branson present Milosevic the man and the politician against the larger canvas of postwar Yugoslavian history. They also emphasize the partnership of Milosevic and his wife, Mirjana, whom they and many others believe has long exerted enormous influence on her husband. For those looking for the reasons and motivations behind the wars and hatreds in the former Yugoslavia, this is an excellent book with some disturbing revelations. (Nov.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Perhaps no two authors are better qualified for the task of such a biography. It is hardly surprising that journalists Doder and Branson (Gorbachev: Heretic in the Kremlin) should find 'Milo sevi'c's personality "compassionless," "rigid," and "vindictive." More interesting are the astonishing events that marked 'Milo sevi'c's rise to power: the "crucial" role of Radio TV Belgrade's "spin doctor" Dusan Mitevic; the betrayal of Serbian party chief Ivan Stambolic, 'Milo sevi'c's mentor; and the dramatic challenges from Prime Minister Milan Panic. The book's shortcoming concerns the details of 'Milo sevi'c's first 40 years. There's little information beyond his parents' suicides and his enduring dependence on his wife, Mira, beginning when they were "emotionally bruised teenagers." While more 'Milo sevi'c biographies will likely follow, this is a solid one suitable for all libraries.
-Zachary T. Irwin, Pennsylvania State Univ., Erie
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Free Press; 1St Edition edition (November 12, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0684843080
• ISBN-13: 978-0684843087
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 5.8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,278,400 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Dusko Doder is a former Washington Post reporter, editor, and foreign correspondent. He is also author of several non-fiction books including Shadows and Whispers: Power Politics Inside the Kremlin from Brezhnev to Gorbachev, and a Gorbachev biography, Heretic in the Kremlin. He is a graduate of Washington University in St. Louis, and holds two advance degrees from Columbia University. Doder's dispatches from Moscow were awarded the Overseas Press Club Citations for Excellence in 1982 and 1989, and the 1984 Edward Weintal Prize for Diplomatic Reporting of Georgetown University. He has been a fellow at the Woodrow Wilson Center in 1976-77 and 1985-86, and a senior fellow at the US Institute of Peace, 1996-97. The Firebird Affair is his first novel.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Essential Read, April 1, 2000

By 

Nicholas A. Ashford (MIT, Cambridge, Msssachusetts) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Milosevic: Portrait of a Tyrant (Hardcover)

This portrait of one of most disruptive and important figures in the Balkans is handled with insight,balance,and a deep knowledge of the historical and cultural complexities of Southeastern Europe. From a journalist team who lived in the region and speak its languages, the reader is given a unique and accurate picture of the Balkan psyche, mentalities, unresolved aspirations, and crosswinds of post-Cold War tensions which continue to play out in the region. It is an indespensible volume necessary for understanding both past and future events.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Eichmann Redux, July 15, 2001

By 

Simon Thackrah (Perth, Western Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Milosevic: Portrait of a Tyrant (Hardcover)

Some argue that Milosevic is solely responsible for the terrible deeds committed during the civil war in Yugoslavia in the 1990s: without the nationalist indoctrination and provocation undertaken by this tyrant, the war may never have taken place. Others argue that the war was inevitable, and that Milosevic was merely acting out a role that any Serbian leader in those circumstances was destined to play: the real villains here are the people of the former Yugoslavia who bear centuries-old grudges against their neighbours and are willing to obey orders to commit heinous moral crimes.

One would expect a biographer to adopt the former, `Great Man Theory of History' position, and a historian to adopt the latter position, with its emphasis on longer-term historical processes. The authors strike an appropriate mix between these two explanations. As the title suggests, they pull no punches in depicting Milosevic as the epitome of Machiavellian evil, but they are also sensitive to the details of the social and political environment which allowed him to rise to the top. As such, the book reads less like a biography than an in-depth political history of Yugoslavia between the late-1980s and the present, and is therefore of interest to students of political science.

Milosevic met his future wife Mirjana Markovic at high school in Pozarevac. They also studied together at Belgrade University. Mira studied sociology and was by all accounts an outspoken firebrand; Sloba studied law and was by all accounts a dull spirit and unoriginal thinker - perfect, it would seem, for a career in the Communist Party. Slobodan's political instincts were finely tuned to the times. He knew that to climb up the Communist Party hierarchy, he had to have a mentor. Ivan Stambolic, a friend from Belgrade University, played this role for Milosevic. Articulate and well-connected, he moved up the hierarchy, and by 1975, he was Prime Minister of Serbia. Crucially, he never forgot about Milosevic. Slobodan followed him nearly every step of the way, until the late 1980s, when he started scheming to replace his former friend in the top job.

It was at this point that Milosevic made his infamous conversion from communism to nationalism, with typical Machiavellian poise. In April 1987, Kosovo was about to erupt into civil unrest, with the minority Serb population complaining about their treatment by the majority Albanian population and threatening a mass exodus. Prime Minister Stambolic ordered Milosevic to visit the province in order to calm both sides down. To put it succinctly, he disobeyed orders. Instead of calming them, Milosevic declared to an angry Serbian crowd that "No one will defeat you again". The ecstatic response of the crowd must have seared into Milosevic's mind the importance of the nationalist card. Over the next months and years he assembled a coalition with the aim of protecting Serbian rights from being trampled by her neighbours.

The Serbian nationalist mindset seems to be a curious mixture of glorification of military defeat (the 14th century Battle of Kosovo was an enormous defeat for the Serbs) and a belief that her neighbours are unjustly benefitting from the bravery of the Serbs in defending their freedom. Of course, there is some merit in the idea that the Serbs have received the rough end of the stick for centuries and should not be subjugated simply to preserve some delicate balance of power, as Tito evidently intended. However Serbia, with Milosevic at its helm, was surely the central player in the collapse and civil war that took place in the 1990s. When it was clear that the country was disintegrating, Milosevic made a secret deal with Slovenia, to allow it to secede. After the unilateral secession of Croatia in 1991, Milosevic planned to incorporate large swathes of Croatia in which there were Serb majorities. Infamously, he united with Croatia's Franjo Tudjman to invade Bosnia-Herzegovina and divide the spoils.

Doder and Branson also alert us to the wider international context in which the civil war was played out. The United Nations, and the various peace envoys sent to negotiate truces, assumed that self-determination for the various `parts' of Yugoslavia was not only the answer, but the right thing to do. In the process, the beliefs of the substantial minority of people who saw themselves as first and foremost `Yugoslavian' (but were perhaps not as vocal as the extreme nationalists) were disregarded. One is reminded of the current centripetal forces in Indonesia, and whether the United Nations would support its break-up.

The authors also point to the significant support of Milosevic by the United States, perhaps an extension of the tradition in American foreign policy of supporting dictatorships if they bring stability to the region. Milosevic was depicted as a peacemaker at the Dayton Peace Accords - requests to America by the Serbian opposition parties for assistance in deposing him were rebuffed. Four years later, however, following the collapse of the Rambouillet talks over Kosovo, Milosevic was depicted as a warmonger and the full force of NATO was brought against his nation.

Milosevic: Portrait of a Tyrant is valuable book for students interested in Yugoslavia's post-war political history, particularly since the 1980s. Written in 2000, it obviously excludes the war crimes indictment and trial. This process alone will require another Eichmann in Jerusalem, although given his recent performance, the focus ought to be the farce, rather than the banality, of evil.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Well-painted portrait of a tyrant, July 21, 2002

By 

Daniel J. Hamlow (Narita, Japan) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Milosevic: Portrait of a Tyrant (Hardcover)

Dusko Doder and Louise Branson's book covers Milosevic's life and path to power up to Kosovo, when NATO bombardment of Belgrade forced him to back down. The book reveals how Milosevic gave himself a name in 1987, when his boss, Serbian Communist Party leader Ivan Stambolic, sent him to Kosovo to quell down Serbian riots. When confronted by protesters who told them the Kosovo Albanians were beating them, he uttered the phrase, "No one will ever dare beat you again." He became a hero from that day on, a figure to whom the Serbs could rally around.

Milosevic knew that too and betrayed Stambolic, his political mentor, to become president of Serbia. The important things here are the parallels and dissimilarities between Tito and Milosevic. Tito, a communist, wanted a united Yugoslavia, a nation of Slovenes, Croats, Serbs, Montenegrins, Macedonians, Muslims, and Kosovars. Milosevic, a nationalist, wanted a united Serbia, but only for the Serbs. And he wanted to be leader of all Serbs, meaning the Montenegrins, Serbs in Serbia, Bosnian Serbs, and the Krajina Serbs. He even told Milan Panic, Yugoslavia's prime minister, that he was the "Ayatollah Khomeini of Serbia. The Serbs will follow me no matter what."

The trouble with that was, the Serbs in those other areas already had their own leaders, such as Radovan Karadzic, so he had to discredit them or put them down under his thumb, which ultimately didn't work.

Some things that have come to light is the back door deal between Milosevic and then-Croatian president Franjo Tudjman, on dividing Bosnia between them. Milosevic didn't care if he lost the Serb-populated Krajina and Eastern Slavonia, both in Croatia, saying that he would repopulate Kosovo with the Serbs from those regions.

But when the chips fall down, Milosevic used nationalism to get power for himself. The beginning of the end came in the middle of the war in Bosnia, when he was beset by UN sanctions and the Western economic blockade. His own position eroding so he endorsed the Vance-Owen plan to divide Bosnia into ten cantons--3 Serb, 3 Muslim, 2 Croat, 1 (Muslim-Croat), with Sarajevo organized like Washington D.C. Karadzic was vehemently against it and split with Milosevic.

Milosevic was the "man of the hour" at the Dayton talks, in which he agreed to give Sarajevo, the holy grail to Bosnian Serbs, to Muslims, as well as division of Republika Srpska by the Posovina corridor. It was not his to give, but he did it to make himself the good Serb to the West and to cut the Bosnian Serbs down to size. However, this move alienated him from true nationalists such as Karadzic and militia leader Vojislav Sesejl.

Milosevic seems no better than a schoolyard bully. He torments the weak but upon facing someone stronger, backs down, as he did in Kosovo. It took the non-violent student group OTPOR to oust him, but that's another book, which I hope is well-researched and documented like this book.