Rafet Husović (Serbian Cyrillic: Рафет Хусовић; 2 April 1964 – 9 March 2021) was a Montenegrin politician, who served as the Deputy Prime Minister of Montenegro. He was the founder and long-term president of the centre-right Bosniak Party, an ethnic minority party for promotion of interests of Bosniaks.

Rafet Husović
Рафет Хусовић
Husović in December 2011
Deputy Prime Minister
In office
4 December 2012 – 4 December 2020
Prime MinisterMilo Đukanović
Duško Marković
Succeeded byDritan Abazović
Minister Without Portfolio
In office
10 June 2009 – 4 December 2012
Prime MinisterMilo Đukanović
Igor Lukšić
Succeeded byMarija Vučinović
Personal details
Born(1964-04-02)2 April 1964
Rožaje, SR Montenegro,
SFR Yugoslavia
Died9 March 2021(2021-03-09) (aged 56)
Podgorica, Montenegro
Political partySDA (1990–1997)
BS (2006–2021)
Alma materUniversity of Pristina
ProfessionPolitician, teacher

Biography

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Early life and education

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Rafet Husović was born in Rožaje to a family of Bosniak origin, a town in northeastern Montenegro, at that time part of the SR Montenegro of SFR Yugoslavia. Having finished elementary and secondary school in his hometown, he graduated at the Faculty of Natural Sciences in Pristina, SAP Kosovo, after which he worked for years as a math teacher in his hometown of Rožaje.

Political career

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After the introduction of the multi-party system in Montenegro in 1990, he joined the branch of the right-wing Party of Democratic Action in Republic of Montenegro (SDA CG), where he was part of party's moderate wing and a member of the main board from 1992 to 1997 and the party's dissolution due police repression. Between 1997 and 2002, he was a member of the Main Board of the International Democratic Union (IDU). From 2002 to 2006 he was a member of the Bosniak National Council of the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro (BNV SCG). He was one of the founders and head of parliamentary group in Rožaje local parliament of the Bosniak-Muslim Alliance, which in February 2006 merged with other Bosniak and Muslim parties in Montenegro to form the Bosniak Party (BS), of which Husović was president from its founding, holding leadership post until February 2021, when he retired from politics due to health problems.[1]

He was a Minister Without Portfolio in the 6th cabinet of Milo Đukanović (2009–2010) and the cabinet of Igor Lukšić (2010–2012). In December 2012, Husović was appointed Deputy Prime Minister in the 7th cabinet of Đukanović (2012–2016).

Following the 2016 parliamentary election in Montenegro, the opposition right-wing populist Democratic Front (DF) which did not recognized the results of the election, made a public offer to Husović, such that if he and his party joined the Democratic Front, he would push for Husović to be selected as the new provisional Prime Minister of Montenegro.[2] Husović's Bosniak Party voted on whether to join the DF or to remain in a coalition with the Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS), and the party ended up voting to stay as a partner to DPS, ultimately rejecting opposition bid.[3] After election, Husović kept the Deputy Prime Minister for Regional Development position in another DPS-led cabinet, with new PM, Duško Marković (2016–2020).[4]

Illness and death

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Rafet Husović died on 9 March 2021, at the age of 56, after a short, but severe illness.[5] The Mayor of Rožaje, Rahman Husović, declared three days of mourning in that municipality following Rafet Husović's death.[6]

References

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  1. ^ Husović, Rafet. "Biography on the official portal of the Bosniak Party of Montenegro". www.bscg.me. Bosniak Party. Retrieved 8 October 2014.
  2. ^ Milana Pejić (October 19, 2016). "Blic: CRNOGORSKI PREMIJER IZ BOŠNJAČKE STRANKE Opozicija za "Blic": Manjinska vlada kao prelazno rešenje" (in Serbian).
  3. ^ [1] Dan: Bošnjaci uz DPS, SD i Albanci još pregovaraju (in Serbian). November 24, 2016. Retrieved April 17, 2017.
  4. ^ Husović, Rafet. "Biography on the official portal of the Government of Montenegro". Government of Montenegro. Retrieved 8 October 2014.
  5. ^ "Preminuo bivši potpredsednik crnogorske Vlade Rafet Husović". N1 Beograd (in Serbo-Croatian). 9 March 2021. Retrieved 14 March 2021.
  6. ^ "Trodnevna žalost u Rožajama zbog smrti Husovića". vijesti.me (in Serbian). Retrieved 2021-03-10.