Josip Torbar (politician, born 1889)

Josip Torbar
Minister of Posts, Telegraph and Telephone of Yugoslavia
In office 5 February 1939 – 10 January 1942
Monarch	Peter II of Yugoslavia
Prime Minister	Dragiša Cvetković
Preceded by	Panta Jovanović
Succeeded by	Juraj Krnjević
Personal details
Born	(1889-04-12)April 12, 1889 Hrženik near Krašić, Croatia-Slavonia, Austria-Hungary
Died	January 5, 1963(1963-01-05) (aged 73) New York City, United States
Resting place	Mirogoj Cemetery, Zagreb, Croatia
Nationality	Croat
Political party	Croatian Peasant Party
Spouse	Jelka Torbar
Relations	Josip Torbar (uncle)
Children	2 sons (Josip, Stjepan)
Alma mater	University of Zagreb
Profession	lawyer, politician

Josip Torbar (12 April 1889 – 5 January 1963) was a Croatian politician and lawyer. He was a member of the Croatian Peasant Party (HSS) involved in leading of the party in the interwar period during the tenure of Vladko Maček and during the World War II. He was a member of the parliament of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, and a minister in the governments of Dragiša Cvetković and Dušan Simović. During the World War II, Torbar met several times with Ante Pavelić, the head of the puppet regime of the Independent State of Croatia (NDH) ruled by Ustaše. In the meetings, Torbar attempted to secure a more favourable position for the HSS which was formally banned by Ustaše. Alternatively, Torbar tried to persuade Pavelić to change specific policies, remove certain officials from power, release arrested HSS members or hand over power to the HSS if the Western Allies prevail over the Nazi Germany.

In late 1943 and in 1944, Torbar was involved in planning of the Lorković–Vokić plot designed to remove Pavelić from power in the NDH, invite the Western Allies, disarm German troops and install the HSS in power. The plan failed and the conspirators, including Torbar were arrested and imprisoned. Torbar was released in May 1945 and he fled the country to Italy, and then to Argentina, Canada, and finally to the United States.