Meri Butirić was born in 1951 in Trogir, though she moved to Split with her family at the start of primary school. She graduated from the University in Zagreb and she witnessed the student unrest of 1971. At the beginning of the war in the 1990s she was in Split with her family. In 1993 they rented a flat from its owner and occupant (who did not, in fact, have clear title). Following Operation Storm in 1995, members of the Croatian Army started visiting the apartment that the Butirić family was renting. They were soon followed by a then-lieutenant colonel of the Croatian Army - the former commander of the 73rd battalion of the Military Police - Željko Maglov, who brought with him a document issued by the Ministry of Defence stating that the flat had been assigned to him. Despite the fact that the document was not in accordance with the legal regulations in force, the Butirić family was evicted from the apartment and Željko Maglov moved in with his family. The holder of the right of occupancy for the apartment in question pursued legal action against Maglov, with the help of Meri Butirić. It took ten years before the matter was resolved in his favour and Maglov was ordered to move out. Today, Meri Butirić works at the Marko Marulić Town Library in Split.