Issue: 1/2025

WORK OF RECONSTRUCTION COMMISSION AND COURT OF HONOR OF THE ECONOMIC AND COMMERCIAL COLLEGE IN BELGRADE 1944/45

Authors:
Dragomir Bondžić

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The Economic and Commercial College (ECC) in Belgrade was founded in 1937 to train experts in economics, commerce, banking and administration. During the Second World War, the ECC was abolished and attached to the Faculty of Law of the reorganized University in Belgrade. After the liberation of Belgrade, the ECC was revitalized and in December 1944, the Reconstruction Commission and the Court of Honor of ECC were established. The Commission and Court consisted of College teachers. The task of the Commission was to restore the ECC and prepare it for the start of work, and the goal of the Court of Honor was to review the behavior of the teaching staff during the occupation. In early 1945, the appointed prosecutor began collecting data on the activities of all teachers during the occupation, and by June 1945, the Court punished six of them with a written reprimand and a multi-year ban on promotion (three to nine). The reasons for the punishment were various forms of “cultural or administrative cooperation with the occupier and his helpers”, which from the point of view of the new revolutionary authorities, represented an offense against the Serbian national honor. The “sins” were: applying for the Faculty of Law competition in 1942, working in banks and companies under occupation. participation in the work of administrative bodies, giving public lectures, etc. The Court excluded from the ECC one teacher who had already emigrated with the enemy, and suspended the proceedings against one who was shot. The proceedings were also suspended against nine teachers for whom no grounds for indicment were found. During the summer and autumn, the commission made material and personnel preparations, students were enrolled and ECC started working at the end of the year. In 1947, ECC was transformed into the Faculty of Economics and attached to the University of Belgrade.