Fahrudin Radončić (; born 24 May 1957) is a Bosnian media magnate,

entrepreneur Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value in ways that generally entail beyond the minimal amount of risk (assumed by a traditional business), and potentially involving values besides simply economic ones. An entreprene ...

investor An investor is a person who allocates financial capital with the expectation of a future Return on capital, return (profit) or to gain an advantage (interest). Through this allocated capital the investor usually purchases some species of pr ...

, and

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

who served as the Minister of Security on two occasions. He is the founder of the '' Dnevni avaz,'' the best-selling newspaper in Bosnia and Herzegovina and is the founder and current president of the Union for a Better Future. From 2015 to 2019, Radončić was also a member of the national House of Peoples.

Biography

Born in Ivangrad,

SR Montenegro The Socialist Republic of Montenegro ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Socijalistička Republika Crna Gora, Социјалистичка Република Црна Гора), commonly referred to as Socialist Montenegro or simply Montenegro, was ...

SFR Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (commonly abbreviated as SFRY or SFR Yugoslavia), known from 1945 to 1963 as the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as Socialist Yugoslavia or simply Yugoslavia, was a country ...

, Radončić finished elementary and high school in

Titograd Podgorica ( cnr-Cyrl, Подгорица; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Montenegro, largest city of Montenegro. The city is just north of Lake Skadar and close to coastal destinations on the Adriatic Sea. Histor ...

. He started working in

journalism Journalism is the production and distribution of reports on the interaction of events, facts, ideas, and people that are the "news of the day" and that informs society to at least some degree of accuracy. The word, a noun, applies to the journ ...

at 19, and at 23 he was editor of the Republican Youth Magazine "Youth Movement in Podgorica". In the same period he got involved in politics as a member of the League of Communists of Montenegro, serving as executive secretary of the Republican Organization of the Union of Communists in

until 1988. He has stated that his mother is of

Albanian Albanian may refer to: *Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular: **Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans **Albanian language **Albanian culture **Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...

origin. From 1989 until the beginning of the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina, he worked as a commentator and correspondent for Montenegro's ''Danas'' weekly. In 1990 he published the book "10,000 Days of Slavery", a biography of Adem Demaçi, an Albanian who spent 28 years in the prisons of the SFR Yugoslavia while fighting for

Kosovo Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe with International recognition of Kosovo, partial diplomatic recognition. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, Montenegro to the west, Serbia to the ...

's independence. The same year Radončić moved from Podgorica to

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ), ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'' is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 2 ...

where he founded the publishing house ''Avaz'' in 1991.Životopis Fahrudina Radončića
(na bosanskom). Centar za istraživačko novinarstvo. Pristupljeno 13. ožujka 2014. In 1992, at the start of the war, Radončić joined the

Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina The Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina (; ; ARBiH), often referred to as Bosnian Army, was the military force of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It was established by the government of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina i ...

(ARBiH), serving for a year as member of the cabinet of General Sefer Halilović, Chief of Staff of the ARBiH Supreme Command. In October 1993, while living in besieged

, he launched the weekly publication ''Bošnjački avaz'' (English: Bosniak voice). The first texts published in this magazine, dated 15 November 1993, were strongly opposed to the division of

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

". In October 1995, through his publishing company, Radončić launched '' Dnevni avaz'' (English: Daily voice). In 2000, he constructed the first Avaz building (today Addiko Bank building in Sarajevo), in 2004 the Radon Plaza Hotel, and in 2007 he won the largest public acknowledgement for contribution to the reconstruction of

Sarajevo Canton The Sarajevo Canton, officially the Canton of Sarajevo (; ; ), is one of the ten cantons of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Its cantonal seat is the city of Sarajevo, also the capital city of Bosnia and Herzeg ...

. In 2006, the construction of the Avaz Twist Tower began, the highest building in Bosnia and Herzegovina and in the

Balkans The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...

. It was completed in a record two years. In 2012, his company built the largest business centre in

Tuzla Tuzla (, , ) is the List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, third-largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the administrative center of Tuzla Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. As of 2013, it has a population of 110,979 inha ...

. Radončić founded his own party in September 2009, the Union for a Better Future, as a centre-right Bosniak party. Since then, he has served twice in government as Minister of Security, the first time from 22 November 2012 until 29 April 2014 ( Vjekoslav Bevanda cabinet), and the second time since 23 December 2019 until 2 June 2020 ( Zoran Tegeltija cabinet). From 16 February 2015 until 28 February 2019, Radončić was a member of the national House of Peoples. He competed for the Bosniak post of member of the

Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina The presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Predsjedništvo Bosne i Hercegovine, separator=" / ", Предсједништво Босне и Херцеговине) is a three-member body which collectively serves as head of state of ...

in 2010, 2014 and 2018, each time losing to the

Party of Democratic Action The Party of Democratic Action (; abbr. SDA) is a Bosniak nationalist, conservative political party in Bosnia and Herzegovina. History The Party of Democratic Action (SDA) was founded on 26 May 1990 in Sarajevo, as a "party of Muslim cultural ...

(SDA) candidates, Bakir Izetbegović and

Šefik Džaferović Šefik Džaferović Nishan-e-Pakistan, N.Pk (born 9 September 1957) is a Bosnian politician who served as the List of Bosniak members of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, 7th Bosniak member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina from ...

. On 2 June 2020, Radončić resigned as Minister of Security over a migration dispute with other members of the Bosnian government led by

Zoran Tegeltija Zoran Tegeltija (; born 29 September 1961) is a Serbs of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnian Serb politician serving as director of the Indirect Taxation Authority of Bosnia and Herzegovina (ITA) since June 2023. He previously served as Ministry of F ...

; he proposed the deportation of 9,000 migrants which the cabinet voted against. His first wife is the Montenegrin journalist Snježana Rakonjac, with whom he had a son. In 1994, Radončić married Azra Bučan, with whom he had two sons. In May 2012, they divorced.

Works

*''Adem Demaçi. Deset tisuca dana robije'' (''Confession. One Thousand Days of Imprisonment''), Danas Verlag, Zagreb 1990 *''Bosna ce opstati'' (''Bosnia will remain''), Danas Verlag, Zagreb 1991 *''Goodbye, Bosnia'', Danas Verlag, Zagreb 1991

References

External links

*
Dnevni Avaz
{{DEFAULTSORT:Radoncic, Fahrudin 1957 births Living people People from Berane Bosniaks of Montenegro Bosnia and Herzegovina people of Montenegrin descent Bosnia and Herzegovina journalists Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina soldiers Union for a Better Future of BiH politicians Government ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina Security ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina Members of the House of Peoples of Bosnia and Herzegovina