Ljiljana Raičević ( sr-cyr, Љиљана Раичевић; born 29 June 1947, née Petrović) is a

human rights Human rights are universally recognized Morality, moral principles or Social norm, norms that establish standards of human behavior and are often protected by both Municipal law, national and international laws. These rights are considered ...

and

women's rights Women's rights are the rights and Entitlement (fair division), entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st c ...

activist in

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

and

Montenegro , image_flag = Flag of Montenegro.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Montenegro.svg , coa_size = 80 , national_motto = , national_anthem = () , image_map = Europe-Mont ...

. She was the 2006 laureate of

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says that it has more than ten million members a ...

's Ginetta Sagan Fund Award. Raicevic created Montenegro's SOS LINE, the first NGO that in that country which served women by providing resources for women in abusive relationships. After noticing that the women calling the SOS LINE needed additional assistance, such a safe place to stay, as well as medical, psychological, and legal assistance, Raičević established the Women's Safe House, the first shelter in Montenegro for victims of

domestic violence Domestic violence is violence that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes r ...

. With the Safe House, she successfully lobbied the

Parliament of Montenegro The Parliament of Montenegro () is the unicameral legislature of Montenegro. The Parliament currently has 81 members, with each member elected to a four-year term. Following the 2006 independence referendum, the Parliament declared and ratified t ...

for the adoption of a witness protection law.

Biography

Raičević was born in

Podgorica 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 ...

, Montenegro. Her father was Milovan Petrović and her mother Lyubov, was a

Belarus Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east and northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Belarus spans an a ...

ian from

Minsk Minsk (, ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach (Berezina), Svislach and the now subterranean Nyamiha, Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the administra ...

. Raičević attended the high school in Podgorica where her mother taught Russian language; she played volleyball and was a member of the cultural society, "Budo Tomović". After high school, she entered the Faculty of History and Geography in

Nikšić Nikšić (Cyrillic script, Cyrillic: Никшић, ), is the second largest city in Montenegro, with a total population of 32,046 (2023 census) located in the west of the country, in the centre of the spacious Nikšić field at the foot of Trebjesa ...

. She met her future husband Andrew Loca Raičevića (d. 1994) when he was a young lawyer; he later became deputy minister of the Montenegrin Ministry of Interior Affairs. They have three children, a daughter, and two sons. She worked at the Medical Institute in Podgorica from 1970 until her retirement in 1999. Between 1985 and 1989, she was president of the Union of Medical Workers. She also served as an elected councillor in the Municipal Parliament for the Liberal Alliance of Montenegro. In 1996, she established the first women's NGO in Montenegro, a hotline for victims of domestic violence, and served as its coordinator until 1999. In that year, she founded the NGO, Women's Safe House, the first shelter for victims of domestic violence in Montenegro. In 2001, she became a member of the Montenegrin project board for the protection of victims of

human trafficking Human trafficking is the act of recruiting, transporting, transferring, harboring, or receiving individuals through force, fraud, or coercion for the purpose of exploitation. This exploitation may include forced labor, sexual slavery, or oth ...

. In addition to working with victims of domestic violence and human trafficking, Raičević educates police and state authorities on these issues.

Awards

In 2003, she was named "Person of the Year" by ''

Vreme is a weekly news magazine based in Belgrade, Serbia. History In 1990, dissatisfied with the media climate in SR Serbia, SFR Yugoslavia's largest constituent unit, a group of liberal Serbian intellectuals, including prominent lawyer Srđa Popovi ...

'', the

Belgrade Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...

-based newspaper. She was the 2006 laureate of the Ginetta Sagan Fund Award.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Raicevic, Ljiljana 1947 births Living people People from Podgorica Montenegrin people of Belarusian descent Serbian human rights activists Serbian people of Belarusian descent Serbian people of Montenegrin descent Serbian women's rights activists Serbian women activists University of Montenegro alumni Organization founders Women founders