The "Milovan Đilas" Award was presented to Tea Gorjanc Prelević

The "Milovan Đilas" Award, presented by the "Milovan Đilas" Academy for contribution to the strengthening and affirmation of free thought, was presented to human rights activist and executive director of the NGO "Akcija za ljudska prava" (HRA) Tei Gorjanc Prelević, as part of the "Bookiranje" festival, organized by the publishing house Fokalizator.

The award ceremony, after the performance of the Montenegrin anthem by the Cetinje rock band "Prizma", marked the start of the new "Booking" festival.

The decision on the award was made by a jury consisting of: Prof. Dr. Vladimir Vojnović (president), Dragana Erjavšek (member) and M.A. Miloš Vukanović (member). The jury's statement states that Tea Gorjanc Prelević was born in Belgrade, and has been living and working in Podgorica since 2000. She graduated from the Faculty of Law, University of Belgrade, while she received her master's degree in international and public law in the United States, at the American University Washington College of Law. The jury, as Fokalizator reported, was reminded of her rich biography and long-standing work in the field of human rights, judicial reform, war crimes and protection against discrimination.

"During her many years of public engagement, she has particularly addressed issues of the rule of law, judicial reform, human rights, war crimes and transitional justice, the protection of culture, freedom of expression and protection from discrimination," the jury said in a statement, recalling that Tea Gorjanjc Prelević was one of the advocates for victims of the war crime of deportation of Bosnian and Herzegovinian refugees from Montenegro.

The jury also highlighted her numerous public criticisms over the past 12 months, which related to violence and discrimination against Turkish citizens in Montenegro, failure to meet the conditions of Chapter 23 in negotiations with the European Union, obstruction of war crimes prosecution, attacks on the Dzada Film Festival in Podgorica, as well as attempts to erect a monument to war criminal Pavle Đurišić and the public rehabilitation of Ratko Mladić.

"Due to her overall intellectual engagement and exceptional contribution to the protection of freedom of expression, the jury unanimously decided that the award should go to her," the organizer adds.

Tea Gorjanc Prelević, in expressing her gratitude for the recognition, emphasized the importance of the name the award carries.

"Thank you to the jury, thank you for this recognition. Thank you, first of all, for deciding on the award for freedom of expression. Thank you for naming it after Milovan Đilas, which reminds us that in our history, apart from warfare, there have been very striking examples of people risking their lives for the right to criticize the government," said the laureate.

She emphasized that she does not see the recognition as personal, but rather as a joint achievement of her close associates and comrades.

"We are an activist family that cares daily, selflessly and over time about peace and the quality of life in Montenegro. And we will continue to do so, because it is a shared struggle," she said.

Speaking about her inner motivations, the laureate admitted that she had always felt the need not to be a "shy coward."

"That's my need for justice. That's my need for peace. And in the end, I realized that it's a need for fairness, for respect for people and human rights," she emphasized.

She also addressed the socio-political moment and the dangers of growing nationalism.

"My other very important, intimate need is for peace. And I am terrified of the thought of war happening again in this region. And these days it seems to me that we have never been closer to that. It is as if the tragic nineties have taught us nothing. And that is why I think we have the ultimate responsibility to step out of our comfort zone and speak out and call out at all costs," warned Tea Gorjanc Prelević.

She added that one must constantly warn against "hate speech and selfish nationalism."

"Montenegro, our country, has an ethnically and culturally rich composition. Enough so that every day it has the opportunity to practice resistance to nationalism. And we must promptly vaccinate children against it from a young age," she said.