User:IntPolCC/Federal Executive Council (Yugoslavia)

Structure
The SIV was lead by a President and two vice presidents, who were elected by the S.F.R.Y assembly on request of the S.F.R.Y President. Council members (also called secretaries) were elected to equally represent the six republics making up SFR Yugoslavia, as well as the two autonomous regions in Serbia, Kosovo and Vojvodina. Both the President and council members of the SIV would hold terms of four years. The SIV President could not hold more than two consecutive terms, however council members were allowed to hold up to 3 terms under certain statutes. Elections for a new Federal Executive Council would take place after the creation of each new S.F.R.Y Assembly. Members of the SIV give up their positions in the S.F.R.Y assembly when elected. The SIV President has the right to call meeting of the council at any time. The S.F.R.Y President or at least five Council Members also had the right to call a meeting of the Council.

The SIV consisted of the secretaries for the 12 major federal bureaucracies. These secretaries were approved by the Federal Assembly from recommendation of the SIV President:

The SIV President was considered the Prime Minister and the Federal Executive Council as a whole a cabinet if one was to compare SFR Yugoslavia to other countries at the time.
 * Agriculture
 * Development
 * domestic trade
 * Finance
 * Foreign affairs
 * Foreign economic relations
 * Industry and energy
 * Internal affairs
 * Labor
 * Legal and administrative affairs
 * National defense
 * Transport and communication

Responsibilities
The SIV was responsible for most day to day tasks of the S.F.R.Y assembly. These included reviewing policy set by the S.F.R.Y assembly and recommending new policy, creation of federal bills to be submitted to the S.F.R.Y assembly, submission of budget regulations for the Federal Budget, and adopting regulations to enforce Federal Statutes.

The creation of legislation could take the SIV about a year before it is sent to the Federal Assembly. In the 1970s, the SIV was behind the creation of legislation tackling controversial issues in Yugoslavia regarding the six republics. The SIV was one of the few bureaucratic bodies in Yugoslavia that had access to "expert information" needed to create effective policies.

Post Tito
After Tito's death in 1980, many of the six republics began to demand more autonomy and were voicing their interest more aggressively. To try and settle negotiations, the SIV relied heavily on temporary measures outlined in the constitution. These measures could not be blocked by protesting delegations and could only be overturned by unanimous decision of the delegations. These measures, that were only supposed to be used for shot-term periods, were used extensively for long periods of time. The SIV's failure to create effective long-term legislation could be seen as one of the many factors leading up to the Breakup of Yugoslavia.