Ljiljanna Maria Ravlich (born Ljiljana Ravlić on 9 January 1958 in

Split, Croatia )'' , settlement_type = List of cities and towns in Croatia, City , anthem = ''Marjane, Marjane'' , image_skyline = , imagesize = 267px , image_caption = Top: Nighttime view of ...

FPR Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as SFR Yugoslavia or simply as Yugoslavia, was a country in Central and Southeast Europe. It emerged in 1945, following World War II, and lasted until 1992, with the breakup of Yu ...

) is a

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

n politician. She was a Labor Party member of the

Western Australian Legislative Council The Western Australian Legislative Council is the upper house of the Parliament of Western Australia, a state of Australia. It is regarded as a house of review for legislation passed by the Legislative Assembly, the lower house. The two Houses ...

from 1997 to 2015. She was the Minister for Education during the debate over the introduction of

outcomes-based education Outcome-based education or outcomes-based education (OBE) is an educational theory that bases each part of an educational system around goals (outcomes). By the end of the educational experience, each student should have achieved the goal. Ther ...

. She subsequently served as Minister for Government Enterprises; Multicultural Interests and Citizenship; Youth; and Minister Assisting the Minister for Planning and Infrastructure.

Early life

Ravlich lived in the small village of Kozica,

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

until the age of five, when her family emigrated to

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

, Western Australia in 1963. Her family initially lived in Midland, and Ravlich attended

Governor Stirling Senior High School Governor Stirling Senior High School (abbreviated as GSSHS) is a public co-educational partially selective high day school, located in Woodbridge, a north-eastern suburb of Perth, Western Australia. The school provides both a vocational and ...

. She continued her tertiary education at

Curtin University of Technology Curtin University, formerly known as Curtin University of Technology and Western Australian Institute of Technology (WAIT), is an Australian public research university based in Bentley, Perth, Western Australia. It is named after John Curtin, P ...

where she completed a BA (SocSc) majoring in

economics Economics () is the social science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and intera ...

and also Graduate Diplomas in Education and Education Administration. From 1980, she worked as a high school teacher in Norseman,

Kambalda Kambalda is a small mining town about from the mining city of Kalgoorlie in Western Australia, within the Goldfields. It is split into two townsites apart, Kambalda East and Kambalda West; and is located on the western edge of a giant salt ...

, Northam and Morawa. Later she moved into education management before starting her own consulting company. She married in 1984, but the marriage lasted only two years.

Political career

Ravlich was elected to the Legislative Council in 1996, becoming the first woman born in a non-English speaking country to enter the

Parliament of Western Australia The Parliament of Western Australia is the bicameral legislature of the Australian state of Western Australia, forming the legislative branch of the Government of Western Australia. The parliament consists of a lower house, the Legislative Ass ...

. She is also thought to be the first Croatian-born woman elected to a parliament outside

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

. When the

Gallop The canter and gallop are variations on the fastest gait that can be performed by a horse or other equine. The canter is a controlled three-beat gait, while the gallop is a faster, four-beat variation of the same gait. It is a natural gait pos ...

Labor Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the la ...

government was elected in

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...

, she served as a parliamentary secretary until 2005, when she was appointed as Local Government Minister. Shortly afterwards she became the Minister for Education. Charged with the implementation of a controversial

policy, she held a high-profile portfolio and received much media coverage before losing her ministerial position in December 2006. PLATO WA, a community-based lobby group, celebrated her demotion. In March 2007, as a result of a cabinet reshuffle by Premier

Alan Carpenter Alan John Carpenter (born 4 January 1957) is a former Australian politician who served as the 28th Premier of Western Australia, from 2006 to 2008. From Albany, Carpenter graduated from the University of Western Australia, and worked as a journ ...

, Ravlich was reinstated into the cabinet. She lives in Cottesloe, and is the partner of Western Australia's former State Opposition Leader

Eric Ripper Eric Stephen Ripper (born 13 September 1951) is a retired Australian politician. From 2008 to 2012 he was Leader of the Opposition and leader of the Labor Party in Western Australia. He grew up on a wheat/sheep farm near Nyabing. Ripper late ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ravlich, Ljiljanna 1958 births Australian people of Croatian descent Members of the Western Australian Legislative Council Curtin University alumni People educated at Governor Stirling Senior High School Living people People from Split-Dalmatia County Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of Western Australia Yugoslav emigrants to Australia 21st-century Australian politicians 21st-century Australian women politicians Women members of the Western Australian Legislative Council