Family members, close friends, and associates of the late Biljana Kovačević-Vučo came together to set up a fund to preserve the memory of the prominent Serbian human rights defender. The Biljana Kovačević-Vučo Fund aims to continue her courageous and tireless advocacy of respect, promotion and improvement of human rights and democratic values.

Biljana Kovačević-Vučo was president of Lawyer’s Committee for Human Rights – YUCOM and one of the founders of the Yugoslav Action NGO and the independent union Nezavisnost in March 1999. Sadly Biljana Kovačević-Vučo passed away on 20 April 2010 in Belgrade.

The fund was set up in full accordance with the law and registered with the competent Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Serbia. On 1 September 2010 founders of the fund went to the Belgrade branch of the Credit Agricole Serbia (Kolarčeva St. branch) and requested that a current account be set up. After obtaining the required tax documentation, the founders returned to the aforementioned bank on 8 October. The founders revisited the branch on numerous occasions but each time were unsuccessful in opening the account. Finally, they were informed that it was not possible to open the account, however no further explanation was provided.

After pursuing the matter further with the bank superiors, the founders of the Fund were informed that the setting up of an account for a ’fund which bears such name’ was not permitted by the branch manager. It was only after the intervention of superior authorities within the bank, that the Fund’s current account was eventually opened.