Branko Pešić | Origin of Street Names

Branko Pesic (1922 - 1986) was a participant in the National Liberation War, a high-ranking official of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia, and arguably the most significant mayor of Belgrade in the history of the Serbian and Yugoslav capital.

He was born in Zemun, where he completed elementary school and began attending Zemun Gymnasium. Becoming part of the then-illegal organization SKOJ, he was expelled from gymnasium in 1939, with a ban on further education throughout the entire territory of Belgrade.

At the start of the imminent war, he joined the partisans, earning decorations and recognitions that paved his way to a successful political career in the new Yugoslavia. After the war, he completed the Higher Party School and became an esteemed "soldier" of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia.

Branko Pesic's political ambitions were always tied to Belgrade. As a native of Zemun, in addition to numerous party functions, he served as the president of the Zemun municipality from 1955 to 1957. However, his greatest impact and honorary place in the history of the capital city were achieved during his ten-year tenure as the president of the Belgrade Assembly.

Despite holding important positions, Branko Pesic, unlike many of his party colleagues, maintained an unusual humility throughout his career and nurtured closeness with the "ordinary" people. He lived in a modest family house in Zemun and commuted to work in his own "Peugeot," rejecting all privileges that came with his official duties. On his way to work or home, he would often spend hours talking about the problems of fellow citizens, and many of them even had the mayor's phone number. A man of great charisma and capability, he conducted himself throughout his career as a "good guy from the neighborhood."

The urban progress that Belgrade experienced during Branko Pesic's mandate is considered exceptional. From 1964 to 1974, a section of the highway was constructed through Belgrade, along with the Gazela Bridge, or Mostar Junction, and numerous symbols of the city today—Autokomanda, Beogradjanka, Hala Pionir (now Aleksandar Nikolic), Terazije Tunnel, Hala Pinki, and Ada Ciganlija were also developed. By building nearly 100,000 apartments, Belgrade almost doubled its population in just ten years.

Resourceful and cunning, capable and powerful, yet humble and diligent, Branko Pesic was a true embodiment of socialist ideals. Many contemporaries still claim today that he was and remains one of the most beloved and respected political figures in Yugoslavia, even more popular in Belgrade than Tito himself.

During Pešić's governance of the city, prominent personalities from Europe and the world visited Belgrade, including the team of famous American astronauts, led by Neil Armstrong, who presented him with authentic footage of the Moon landing.

Pešić made a significant contribution to the city's cultural heritage, as his mandate saw the establishment of perhaps the largest artistic festivals in the country to this day—FEST and BITEF.

As the position of mayor was not lifelong like the presidency, Branko Pešić concluded his term as the head of the city in 1974 and subsequently took on a role in the federal government.

He passed away at the age of 64 and was buried in the old cemetery in Zemun. His legacy resides today in the Museum of Books and Travel. A school in Zemun bears his name, as well as a street in close proximity to Branko Pesic's family house.