Vanja Ćalović presented with the Giorgio Ambrosoli Award – ĆALOVIĆ: FIGHTING AGAINST CORRUPTION MEANS FIGHTING FOR A NORMAL LIFE

Press releases · 15/06/2026

Ćalović received the award in recognition of her work in defending the rule of law under particularly challenging circumstances and in the face of undue pressure.

The award was presented to her by a representative of the Ambrosoli family and representative of the Central European Initiative, a regional intergovernmental forum bringing together countries of Central, Eastern and South-Eastern Europe.

Accepting the award, Ćalović said:

“I do not see this recognition as mine alone. It is, first and foremost, recognition of the work of my organization, MANS, and of all my colleagues who have believed, for many years, that the fight for the rule of law, accountability and the public interest is never in vain. I share it especially with my closest collaborator, Dejan Milovac, with whom I have gone through some of the most difficult and important moments of this work.

 At this moment, this award also carries a special personal meaning for me. As I recover from treatment and gradually return to my professional responsibilities, it gives me additional encouragement to persist in the fight for the values I believe in.“

The award is named after Giorgio Ambrosoli, an Italian lawyer and a symbol of professional courage, who was assassinated in 1979 by a hitman linked to the Mafia.

The purpose of the award is to highlight and celebrate individuals who, despite pressure and personal risk, have demonstrated exceptional commitment to defending the rule of law and fighting corruption and organized crime.

Among the other recipients of this year’s award are Diana Salazar, an anti-mafia prosecutor from Ecuador; Giuseppe Fava, a journalist and writer who was killed for opposing the Mafia; Alessandra Dolci, Chief Prosecutor in Venice and former anti-mafia prosecutor in Milan; and Amalia De Simone, an anti-mafia investigative journalist from Naples.

The full text of Vanja Ćalović’s remarks delivered at today’s award ceremony is available below:

Distinguished members of the Ambrosoli family, dear Secretary General Dal Mas, ladies and gentlemen,

It is a great honour to receive this award, which bears the name of Giorgio Ambrosoli — a man whose example reminds us that integrity is not an abstract virtue, but a concrete decision: not to give in to pressure, not to remain silent when the law is violated, and to defend the public interest even when the price is very high.

I do not see this recognition as mine alone. It is, first and foremost, recognition of the work of my organization, MANS, and of all my colleagues who have believed, for many years, that the fight for the rule of law, accountability and the public interest is never in vain. I share it especially with my closest collaborator, Dejan Milovac, with whom I have gone through some of the most difficult and important moments of this work.

I come from the Balkans, from a region where corruption and organized crime are not abstract terms, but forces that too often shape people’s everyday lives. They determine who gets a job, who has access to justice, who can rely on institutions to protect their basic rights, and who is left without a fair chance at a normal life.

That is why I also see this award as a message to the citizens of Montenegro and our region: do not accept the idea that everything has already been lost, that nothing can be changed, or that silence is the only way to survive. Change does not always begin with great victories. Sometimes it begins with one question, one document, one refusal to be blackmailed, one decision not to look away and not to stay silent in the face of injustice.

The fight against corruption and organized crime is not only the job of prosecutors and the police. It is a fight for a normal life: for schools where knowledge matters more than connections; for jobs earned through ability, not political or criminal loyalty; for institutions that protect citizens, not the powerful; for a society in which courage is not punished, but respected.

At this moment, this award also carries a special personal meaning for me. As I recover from treatment and gradually return to my professional responsibilities, it gives me additional encouragement to persist in the fight for the values I believe in.

That fight can succeed only if there are people who continue when it is difficult, when it is dangerous, and when it would be much easier to give up and leave than to stay and fight.

That is why I dedicate this award to all those who, in Montenegro, in the Balkans and beyond, often without protection and without recognition, stand up to corruption, organized crime and the abuse of power.

I dedicate it especially to young people who are being forced to decide whether to leave their country because they see no future, to remain silent, or to fight for change.

My message to them is simple: your future must not be stolen by corruption and organized crime. It belongs to you. And it is worth fighting for.

Thank you.