Civic Alliance of Serbia

Civic Alliance of Serbia (Serbian: Грађански савез Србије, Građanski savez Srbije) was a social liberal party in Serbia.

Known widely by its three-letter acronym in Serbian, GSS was founded and registered in 1992. It came into existence through the merger between an entity called the Republican Club and the Reformist Party (Serbian successor to Ante Marković's SFR Yugoslavia-wide Union of Reform Forces party).

In 1996 Žarko Korać left GSS with a group of dissidents and formed the Social Democratic Union (SDU).^[1]

In late March 2007, Civic Alliance ceased its existence as a distinct political entity when it merged into the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP).

Notable members over the years included Goran Svilanović, former Foreign Minister of Serbia and Montenegro, Nataša Mićić, former parliamentary president and acting president of Serbia, Gašo Knezević, former Serbian Minister of Education, and Vesna Pešić, the party founder and longtime leader.

The party had three representatives in the National Assembly of Serbia on the list of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP).

The future of the party had been in doubt ever since it split into two wings. One part promoted a merger with Democratic Party, while the other part wanted to continue political existence as an independent party. The December 2004 party congress upheld the decision to remain an independent party and elected Nataša Mićić as the new leader. The party decided to apply for membership of the ELDR and the Liberal International. At its May 2004 council, ELDR, accepted GSS as an affiliate member.

However, GSS merged into Liberal Democratic Party on April 7, 2007.

Presidents of the Civic Alliance of Serbia (1992–2007)

#	President		Born-Died	Term start	Term end
1	Vesna Pešić		1940–	1992	1 August 1999
2	Goran Svilanović		1963–	1 August 1999	12 December 2004
3	Nataša Mićić		1965–	12 December 2004	7 April 2007

References