Proveli smo predivan dan u druženju i uživali u prirodnim lepotama Zaltibora sa devojčicama iz Kragujevca, koje su u proteklih par meseci učestvovale u socioedukativnim radionicama na temu prevencije dečjih brakova. Pored toga što su imale priliku da izaberu destinaciju i da pozovu ostale dugarice i drugare sa kojima žele da provedu dan, devojčice su preuzele obavezu da sazovu sastanak sa roditeljima, predstave plan izleta i prikupe potrebne saglasnosti od njih tako da su dale značajan doprinos i samoj organizaciji. Posebnu zahvalnost za realizaciju ovog događaja dugujemo našoj dugogodišnjoj saradnici Emini Nikolić, i svakako organizaciji Romanipen iz Kragujevca.

Posetili smo Stopića pećinu koja je jedna od najuređenijih pećina u Srbiji i istovremeno zaštićeno prirodno dobro od izuzetnog značaja, muzej na otvorenom Staro selo u mestu Sirogojno, vodopad u Gostilju koji se ubraja u najviše prirodne vodopade u Srbiji i atraktivni El Paso City i zaista zanimljive ambijentalne celine koje se u njemu nalaze. Deca do sada nisu imala priliku da posete ove sadržaje tako da su zaista uživali i stekli nova iskustva i utiske.

Dan smo iskoristili da se družimo, da razgovaramo o planovima za budućnost i mogućnostima koje imaju pred sobom u pogledu daljeg razvoja i da utičemo na jačanje svesti o značaju obrazovanja i sticanja veština na putu njihovog ličnog i ekonomskog osamostaljivanja.

Ova aktivnost socijalne inkluzije realizovana je u okviru projekta „Prevencija i eliminacija dečjih brakova u Srbiji“ koji finansiraju Ambasada Kraljevine Holandije u Srbiji i Ministarstvo za ekonomsku saradnju i razvoj Savezne Republike Nemačke (BMZ) u okviru programa Nemačke razvojne saradnje „Inkluzija Roma i drugih marginalizovanih grupa u Srbiji“.

U nedelji za nama posetili smo Palić sa grupom devojčica iz Čantavira i Subotice, a sam izlet je bio prilika za druženje i razgovor o o različitim životnim opcijama i mogućnostima, kao i za podizanje svesti romskih devojčica kako bi u u potpunosti bile društveno uključene i ravnopravni članovi društva. Mnogim devojčicama je ovo bio prvi put da posećuju ovu turističku atrakciju, a nekoliko devojčica se prvi put vozilo autobusom, te im je i ovaj deo današnjeg dana predstavljao novo iskustvo i izazvao dodatan utisak.

Deca su vidno bila oduševljena Palićem, a nakon obilaska jezera i ručka, posetili smo zoološki vrt, gde su uživali u prirodi u kojoj je sam vrt smešten. U vrtu raste preko 270 vrsta drveća od kojih su mnoga retke i egzotične vrste, poput libanskog kedra i džinovske sekvoje ili ariša. Deluje kao je preko 65 vrsta životinja smešteno u prirodno okruženje, barijere su teško vidljive, te je dečji utisak bio autentičniji i jači. Nakon što su nekoliko puta obišle ceo zoo vrt, učesnice su preostalo vreme iskoristile na igralištu koje postoji u samom vrtu.

Devojčice koje su bile na ovoj aktivnosti su se dodatno zbližile. Smatramo da su radionice i ovakve aktivnosti u kojima se direktno radi sa decom i osluškuju njihovi problemi, potrebe i želje najbolji način da se deci priđe i utiče na njihovo ponašanje. Većina devojčica iz ove grupe od svojih porodica ne može očekivati da im upriliče jedan ovakav dan, zato je potrebno da društvo i organizacije koje imaju sluha i sredstava reaguju i iskoriste svoja sredstva i resurse da uključe ove devojčice u sve prilike koje društvo nudi. Posebno se zahvaljujemo našoj saradnici Klaudiji Kurini i Udruženju Roma Ači.

Ova aktivnost socijalne inkluzije realizovana je u okviru projekta „Prevencija i eliminacija dečjih brakova u Srbiji“ koji finansiraju Ambasada Kraljevine Holandije u Srbiji i Ministarstvo za ekonomsku saradnju i razvoj Savezne Republike Nemačke (BMZ) u okviru programa Nemačke razvojne saradnje „Inkluzija Roma i drugih marginalizovanih grupa u Srbiji“.

Učesnici i učesnice prvog kruga radionica „Pravo na jednake šanse u oblasti rada i zapošljavanja i mere i programi Nacionalne službe za zapošljavanje namenjeni teže zapošljivim kategorijama“ imali su priliku da se detaljno informišu o pravima iz oblasti rada i zapošljavanja, merama i programima Nacionalne službe za zapošljavanje, kao i o značaju aktivne uloge pojedinaca u procesu traženja posla, mogućnostima i raspoloživim resursima u smislu unapređenja profesionalnih kompetencija, znanja i veština.

Predstavnici Nacionalne službe za zapošljavanje na održanim radionicama približili su zainteresovanima mere za podsticanje zapošljavanja osetljivih grupa, kao što su subvencije za zapošljavanje i samozapošljavanje, pokretanje sopstvenog biznisa, sticanje praktičnih veština, prekvalifikacije i programe dokvalifikacije za povećanje nivoa kompetencija i zapošljivosti na tržištu rada, program javnih radova, obuka za aktivno traženje zaposlenja, obuka po zahtevima poslodavaca, kao i program funkcionalnog osnovnog obrazovanja. Tokom prvog kruga radionica, oni su imali priliku da dobiju konkretne odgovore na pitanja u vezi zapošljavanja, kao i podrške i pomoći koju pruža Nacionalna služba za zapošljavanje.

Istovremeno, uočen je problem nedostatka raspoložive kvalifikovane radne snage. Stoga je posebno isticana neophodnost funkcionalnog obrazovanja odraslih, koje je preduslov za unapređenje konkurentnosti na tržištu rada. Na održanim radionicama, učesnici i učesnice osnaženi su da se aktivno uključe na tržište rada, da koriste dostupne resurse kako bi podigli kapacitete i unapredili kompetencije i time stvorili nove mogućnosti. Kroz podizanje svesti o značaju obuka, prekvalifikacija i dokvalifikacija, naročito je istaknuta važnost izlaska iz dugoročne radne neaktivnosti, odnosno angažovanosti u sivoj zoni, kroz neformalne oblike zaposlenja.

Tokom prvog kruga radionica, učesnicima i učesnicama su dodatno pojašnjeni mehanizmi za zaštitu prava na rad, koje im je garantovano pod jednakim uslovima i bez diskriminacije, kao i kojim organizacijama odnosno institucijama se mogu obratiti ukoliko im je povređeno pravo iz oblasti prava na rad, odnosno ukoliko su diskriminisani u postupku zapošljavanja ili na samom radnom mestu.

Radionice u Leskovcu, Smederevu, Novom Sadu, Bačkoj Palanci, Subotici, Vranju, Kruševcu i Kragujevcu realizovane su u okviru projekta „Prevencija i eliminacija dečjih brakova u Srbiji“ koji finansiraju Ambasada Kraljevine Holandije u Srbiji i Ministarstvo za ekonomsku saradnju i razvoj Savezne Republike Nemačke (BMZ) u okviru programa Nemačke razvojne saradnje „Inkluzija Roma i drugih marginalizovanih grupa u Srbiji“.

Nacionalna koalicija za okončanje dečijih brakova pripremila je prvi Newsletter koji ima za cilj da ukaže na važnost prevencije i reakcije na dečje brakove. Newsletter, između ostalog, prenosi ključne nalaze godišnjeg izveštaja Praxisa o dečjim brakovima za 2020. godinu koji sadrži poseban osvrt na postupanja centara za socijalni rad u slučajevima dečjih brakova.

Newsletter sadrži i najavu projekta „Prevencija i eliminacija dečjih brakova u Srbiji“ koji je u toku i koji Praxis u saradnji sa partnerima na lokalnom nivou realizuje u 8 opština u Srbiji.

Prvi Newsletter Nacionalne koalicije za okončanje dečijih brakova možete pogledati OVDE.

Nevladina organizacija Praxis organizovala je okrugli sto na kome su sagledani preostali problemi sa kojima se lica u riziku od apatridije u Srbiji još uvek suočavaju. Okrugli sto „Preostali problemi u vezi sa upisom u matične knjige, sticanjem državljanstva i pribavljanjem ličnih dokumenata“ organizovan je u okviru projekta „Suzbijanje apatridije među Romima na Zapadnom Balkanu” koji finansira Fondacija za otvoreno društvo kroz Evropsku mrežu za pitanja apatridije.

U poslednjih više od 10 godina, u Srbiji se desio značajan napredak u oblasti smanjenja apatridije. Uprkos nesumnjivom napretku, i dalje se javljaju određeni problemi koji otežavaju pristup pravima licima u riziku od apatridije. Deca čiji roditelji ne poseduju lične dokumente i dalje ne mogu da se upišu u matične knjige odmah nakon rođenja, postupci za naknadni upis u matične knjige opterećeni su brojnim problemima, sticanje državljanstva po osnovu rođenja u Srbiji ne odvija se na propisan način, a prijava prebivališta često predstavlja nepremostiv problem. Neretko, lica u riziku od apatridije se suočavaju i sa dirskriminacijom u pokušaju da ostvare svoja prava.

„Iako je broj lica u riziku od apatridije značajno manji, ukoliko se problem ne reši u potpunosti, preneće se na nove genaracije i broj lica u riziku od apatridije će rasti. Dok interesovanje za ovu temu bledi, još uvek postoje ljudi čiji problemi nisu obuhvaćeni sistemskim rešenjima.“ – istakla je Jelena Milonjić, predstavnica UNHCR-a. „Intezivno sa državnim organima, u okviru realizacije Sporazuma o razumevanju sa Ministarstvom državne uprave i lokalne samouprave Republike Srbije i Zaštitnikom građana, zajedno sa romskom zajednicom i civilnim sektorom, radimo na rešavanju preostalih problema kako bismo ostvarili zacrtan plan kampanje Ja pripadam čiji je cilj iskorenjivanje apatridije u Srbiji do 2024. godine.“

Milan Radojev, pravni koordinator Praxisa, naglasio je da smo ponosni na sve šta je do sada urađeno, jer je hiljade ljudi upisano u matične knjige i dobilo dokumente te sada mogu da ostvaruju prava. „Međutim, i pored ogromnog napretka, važno je ukazivati na stare ali i na neke nove probleme koji se javljaju, posebno imajući u vidu da i dalje svako dete ne može da se upiše u MKR odmah nakon rođenja, a da se ignorišu preporuke međunarodnih tela koja na ovaj problem ukazuju.“

Osman Balić iz YUROM Centra naveo je da je možda i najblistavija stvar u inkluziji Roma upravo uspešno rešavanje problema sa posedovanjem dokumenata. „Uz pomoć UNHCR-a, Ministarstava, Praxisa, ovaj problem je sveden na najmanju meru. Postoje i dalje svakodnevni problemi, ali ovo je primer modela izvrsnosti, gde je uspešno završeno 90% posla“. 

Učesnici okruglog stola, predstavnici relevantnih institucija i organizacija koje zajedničkim naporima rade na iskorenjivanju apatridije u Srbiji, saglasni su da, i pored nesumnjivog napretka, potrebno je rešiti i preostale probleme kako se ne bi došlo u situaciju da ponovo imamo veliki broj lica u riziku od apatridije, i na to i dalje ukazivati i državnim organima ali i međunarodnim institucijama. 

Praxis lodged an application with the European Court of Human Rights in the case of a child who could not be registered in birth registry books immediately after birth.

In the application, Praxis pointed out that due to the failure to facilitate timely registration in birth registry books, the state denied the child the opportunity to confirm her identity and personal status, to establish a legal relationship with her family and other persons, and stressed that the child was deprived of the opportunity to acquire citizenship and to access a large number of rights, which required registration in birth registry books, such as the right to health care, the right to social protection, the right to freedom of movement or the right to property. Thus, the right to respect for private and family life, guaranteed by the European Convention on Human Rights, was violated. Given that the problem of timely registration in Serbia affects almost exclusively the Roma population, the application stressed that the principle of non-discrimination had also been violated.

Although the Constitution, the Law on Family and ratified international conventions guarantee every child the right to be registered immediately after birth, in cases where mothers do not have personal documents, children cannot be registered immediately after birth, but the procedures that last from several months to several years must be conducted. Since a significant number of Roma women have still not managed to obtain personal documents, there are new cases of children who in the first months or years of their lives are left without registration in birth registry books, and consequently without many other rights. 

The competent institutions have been neglecting this problem for years and ignoring the recommendations of numerous international bodies that point out that this situation is unacceptable, that every child, regardless of whether the parents have documents, must be registered immediately after birth and that it is necessary to change the by-laws that prevent timely registration. 

In the application, Praxis also pointed out that there was no effective legal remedy in Serbia that could eliminate the violation of this right, since the Constitutional Court had repeatedly refused to establish that the impossibility of immediate birth registration constituted a violation of children’s rights. 

In the event that the European Court of Human Rights determines that there has been a violation of rights in this case, it could be a turning point that would finally end the continuous violations of the child's right to timely birth registration and enable every child to have access to all rights and to enjoy the protection provided by registration in registry books.

“Why did you procreate, why didn't you obtain documents first? We can't do anything until the mother obtains an identity card”, Besim ^[1] was told when he inquired in the social welfare centre about how to register his newborn son Senad in birth registry books.

Before that, he addressed the registrar's office where they also told him that the child could not be registered, because the mother did not have documents. With the help of Praxis, the parents then submitted a written request to the registry office explaining that it was uncertain when the mother would be able to obtain an identity card, as she was unable to register her permanent residence, but that the regulations guaranteed immediate birth registration to every child, regardless of whether the parents had documents or not. It was requested to allow the parents to determine the child’s personal name.

However, the registry office not only did not do what it was obliged to do, but did not respond to the request at all. More than four months have passed since Senad was born, but he is still not registered in birth registry books. He does not even have a health card, so his parents, the poverty-stricken residents of a Roma settlement in Belgrade, have to pay for medical examinations from the modest income that his father manages to earn with great difficulty.

Senad's mother Suzana has never had an identity card. She was born in Đakovica, but the registry books in which she was registered remained inaccessible to the Serbian authorities after the 1999 war in Kosovo. Suzana was re-registered in registry books as late as in early 2021 when she was again able to obtain a birth certificate and a citizenship certificate. Since then, she has been unsuccessfully trying to register her permanent residence and obtain an identity card.

In 2020, Suzana began to live in cohabitation with Besim and moved into a house owned by Besim's father. There, Suzana and Besim created a joint family household and later had a child. For more than two years, this address has been for Susana what the law defines as a place of permanent residence: a place where someone has settled with the intention of living there permanently and where the centre of his or her life activities is located.

However, when she tried to register her permanent residence at that address in the police station, she was told that she must register her permanent residence in the Police Administration for Đakovica, according to her place of birth, and that only after obtaining her identity card there could she come again and apply for registration in the place where she actually lived. Not knowing that this conduct of police officers was not only unjustified, but also against the law - because no one should register their permanent residence in a place where they do not live - Suzana and Besim travelled to Jagodina, where the Police Administration for Đakovica was located, and tried to register Suzana's permanent residence. But they did not succeed to register there either, because Suzana was asked to provide the property ownership certificate or other document for the house in Đakovica where she would register her permanent residence. Suzana neither had nor could obtain such documents, so she returned to Belgrade without registering permanent residence. 

Then she tried again to register her place of permanent residence in the police station in the municipality where she lived, but she was again told that she must first obtain an ID card in Jagodina.

In March of this year, Praxis drafted a written request for permanent residence registration and instructed Besim and Suzana to go to the police again and submit it. However, they did not succeed again. Although the officers were obliged to receive the request, they refused to do so, telling Besim that he was “coming for nothing” and that “there is nothing they can do”. Addressing the supervisor did not help either.

However, Besim did not give up. As he says, he slightly modified and adapted the request for permanent residence registration, took it to the office of the President of the Republic and submitted it there as a complaint against the work of the police.

About a month later, Besim and Suzana were called from the police station. Suddenly, the officers no longer treated them with the attitude of rejection and started to do without any problems what they had previously claimed to be impossible: they took statements from Suzana, Besim and his father, obtained a new citizenship certificate and the police patrol conducted a site visit. It turned out that Suzana’s personal identification number (JMBG) was wrongly entered, but the correction procedure was initiated ex officio and will probably be completed soon.

In a nutshell, the police began to act as they were supposed to from the beginning and as prescribed. However, the question arises as to why it was not done immediately, but instead, Suzana lost a year and a half in futile attempts to register her permanent residence.

Every citizen has the right and duty to register their place of permanent residence and obtain an identity card. Every child must be registered in birth registry books immediately after birth. It is prescribed by laws, but it proved to be insignificant in the case of Senad and Susana. Senad should have been registered a long time ago, and Susana did not achieve anything by invoking the laws until she addressed the office of the President. It seems that Suzana is now close to a solution to her problem, but the question is what will happen tomorrow when someone else in Suzana's situation comes to the police station. And they will certainly come, because a large number of Roma in Serbia still live without personal documents and without registered permanent residence. Will they also have to wander from one counter to another and address the authorities that are not responsible for solving this kind of issues, or will the competent authorities simply do what they are obliged to do? We will let you know.

 [1] The names have been changed to protect privacy.

Mirita ^[1] is just one of many children who could not be registered in birth registry books immediately after birth because their mothers did not have personal documents.

Mirita is neither the only child whose parents have to pay for every medical examination, because neither she nor her mother have a health card. 

The case of Mirita is neither unique in the fact that the maternity hospital charged the parents for the costs of childbirth, despite the law stating that in cases where the mothers do not have health insurance, the costs of childbirth are covered by the state.

Like other families whose members do not have identity documents, Mirita and her parents cannot receive either child or parental allowance or social assistance, regardless of the fact that her family is among the poorest.

These are situations that keep repeating in Serbia, and they are the result of violating one of the most important rights of the child: to be registered immediately after birth. 

Although only one of many similar ones, the case of Mirita may still be remembered, because it could end this negative practice that leaves hundreds of children without the possibility to exercise their basic rights in the most vulnerable period of their lives. 

In fact, Praxis lodged an application with the European Court of Human Rights pointing out that the state had violated Mirita's right to immediate birth registration, thus depriving her of the opportunity to exercise a number of other rights.   

Although international conventions, the Constitution and the Law on Family guarantee immediate birth registration to every child, the undocumented mothers cannot register their newborn children in birth registry books. In order to register these children, it is necessary to conduct special procedures, due to which the registration is delayed for at least a few months, often longer than a year, and sometimes even for years. 

Shortly after her birth, Mirita's parents went to the competent registry office and tried to determine the child’s personal name, but they did not succeed because the mother did not have personal documents. Then they submitted a written request, in which they referred to the regulations guaranteeing every child the right to immediate birth registration and to a personal name immediately after birth, but it was also in vain - the registry office informed them that the police should first establish the mother's identity, then the procedure for registering the mother in birth registry books should be conducted, and after that she should obtain an identity card and only then could she give a statement about the child's personal name.

However, the question is whether Mirita's mother will ever manage to be registered in birth registry books and obtain an identity card. Her request for registration was first rejected by the registry office, and then the court refused to determine the date and place of her birth. Mirita's mother lodged a constitutional complaint, but procedures before the Constitutional Court may last for years. Praxis has already written about the case of Mirita's mother and about her unsuccessful attempts to be registered in registry books. Meanwhile, four months have already passed since Mirita's birth and she is still unregistered.

For years, Praxis has been drawing attention of the competent authorities to the systematic violation of the rights of children in Serbia by depriving them of the right to timely birth registration, and has been stressing the need to remove the obstacles that prevent such registration, but until now there has been no will to solve this problem. However, if the European Court of Human Rights determines that there has been a violation of rights, Mirita's case could be a turning point that would finally end this unacceptable situation.

 [1] Her real name has been changed to protect her privacy.

When in 2020 the Supreme Court of Cassation adopted the Conclusion on the jurisdiction of the non-contentious court in the procedure of registration in birth registry books, it was clear that registration to birth registry books would become much more difficult for many citizens. However, it could probably not be assumed that registration may become as complicated as in the case of the five-year-old girl Katarina ^[1].

After her birth, Katarina was not registered in birth registry books, due to which the procedure of subsequent registration must be conducted for her. Since her mother is not registered in birth registry books and does not have personal documents, the procedure of subsequent registration before the registry office cannot be successfully conducted for Katarina. In fact, in cases where the mother does not have personal documents or where she is not alive or cannot participate in the procedure for another reason, or in situations where there are no witnesses who were present at the birth, or there is no written proof of birth - the child cannot be registered in birth registry books in the administrative procedure before the registry office. 

In these cases, the child should be registered in the court procedure for determining the date and place of birth. This procedure was established by the Amendments to the Non-Contentious Procedure in 2012 and is intended precisely for those who find themselves in Katarina's situation, that is, persons who cannot prove the fact of birth in the administrative procedure. 

For a full eight years, that is, before the adoption of the aforementioned Conclusion of the Supreme Court of Cassation (SCC), the courts almost always assessed independently whether the conditions for conducting the procedure for determining the date and place of birth were met. In cases where it was obvious that it was not possible to conduct the administrative procedure before the registry office, the courts did not require citizens to attempt to register in birth registry books in the administrative procedure before initiating a court procedure.

Although for years the procedures were conducted as described without problems, which created an extensive and almost uniform court practice, the Supreme Court of Cassation, in its Conclusion on the jurisdiction of the non-contentious court in the procedure of registration in birth registry books, took the position that non-contentious procedures for determining the date and place of birth could be conducted only if the administrative procedure of subsequent registration in birth registry books had been previously conducted and if the request had been rejected.

In accordance with that Conclusion of the Supreme Court of Cassation, instead of immediately initiating a procedure before the court, Katarina's parents first submitted a request for subsequent registration to the registry office, although it was clear from the beginning that there was no chance of success in that procedure since the mother did not have personal documents. However, they hoped that the procedure before the registry office would not last long, that is, that their request would be quickly rejected and that they would therefore be able to initiate a procedure before the court. The request was submitted in October 2021.

However, the competent authority did not issue a decision rejecting the request, but suspended the procedure and determined that the suspension would last until the preliminary issue was resolved, that is, until Katarina's mother was registered in birth registry books. Since the Supreme Court of Cassation took the position that the request had to be rejected, a decision on suspending the procedure did not fulfil the requirement for initiating a court procedure. Thus, Katarina found herself in a situation where she could neither initiate a procedure before the court, nor could she register in the procedure before the registry office.

To make matters worse, the chances of the mother registering in birth registry books in the administrative procedure are no higher than Katarina's, because the mother's mother is no longer alive. However, in accordance with the Conclusion of the Supreme Court of Cassation, it is first necessary for Katarina's mother to obtain a decision rejecting the request in the administrative procedure, and only then to initiate a court procedure. And only when the procedure for the mother is successfully conducted before the court and when she receives the ID card, will it be possible to continue Katarina's procedure for registration in birth registry books. It can take years to achieve this.

Hence, in late 2021, a procedure for subsequent registration was initiated before the registry office for the mother, but even half a year later, there has been no progress in that procedure. When Praxis lawyer called the registry office to inquire about the status of the case, the officer could not find the case at first, and then it turned out that the case reached the wrong officer and that nothing had been done about it.

When the procedure for determining the date and place of birth was introduced into the legal system 10 years ago, it was a salvation for many people who had tried unsuccessfully to register in birth registry books in the administrative procedure for years. In the years that followed, thanks to this procedure, a large number of legally invisible persons managed to register in birth registry books in a rather simple way, which allowed them to obtain personal documents and gain the opportunity to access many rights for the first time. 

Now, however, it seems that things are going backwards and the progress made has been significantly undermined. This is best evidenced by the case of Katarina, who would probably have already been registered in birth registry books if the Supreme Court of Cassation had not adopted the Conclusion and if she had immediately initiated the procedure before the court. Now she is not even close to that goal and it is completely uncertain when and if her registration will be possible at all. 

It should be noted that the disputed legal position of the Supreme Court of Cassation, which is discussed here, is not the only SCC’s position that will make it difficult or impossible for citizens to register in birth registry books. In addition, the Supreme Court of Cassation states in its Conclusion that persons who had been registered in birth registry books, which were later destroyed, as well as “persons registered in the birth registry books of the so-called Republic of Kosovo”, cannot initiate a procedure for determining the date and place of birth. See more about these positions, which are neither purposeful nor in accordance with the valid regulations here and here.

[1] Her real name has been changed to protect her privacy.

Edita ^[1] does not have a health card or an ID card. She was born 30 years ago in Germany, where her parents moved from Đakovica in the early 1990s. Due to the unregulated status in Germany, she had to return to Serbia three years ago. Edita has not been able to obtain personal documents since then.

Three months ago, Edita gave birth to her son. Although the law stipulates that in cases where mothers do not have health insurance, the funds for expenses related to pregnancy and childbirth are provided from the state budget, the maternity hospital where Edita gave birth did not take this into account. From the moment of Edita’s admittance to the maternity hospital, the employees were telling her that she would have to pay hospital expenses and threatened her that she would not be allowed to leave the hospital until she paid the expenses.

As Edita did not have personal documents, the maternity hospital - applying the instructions of the competent ministries for handling cases of undocumented women giving birth - called the police that were supposed to establish the mother’s identity. However, the maternity hospital misused the arrival of the police to further intimidate Edita by threatening her that the police allegedly came to arrest her, because she did not have money to pay for medical expenses.

Edita's family has 12 members and only one of them is employed. They live as tenants and barely make ends meet. They borrowed 500 euros to pay the expenses, because the hospital staff initially told them that it would be the total amount. However, when they wanted to pay, it turned out that the expenses were around 900 euros, and the family members were told not to show up until they brought the full amount, and that the costs would increase with each additional day of hospital stay. Finally, the family had to borrow more money and pay everything that was requested.

New problems arose when Edita tried to register her son in birth registry books. Edita was told in the registry office that the child could not be registered until she obtained an ID card. Consequently, Edita's son remains unregistered, and therefore does not have a health card, and the family cannot receive parental and child allowance. Although both the Constitution and the Law on Family, as well as international conventions, stipulate that every child must be registered immediately after birth, in practice this rule does not apply to children whose mothers do not have personal documents - these children remain unregistered until their mothers obtain documents or until special procedures are conducted before social welfare centres or registry offices. It delays the registration of the child for a few months at best, and often for several years. For example, Edita's older daughter, who is 3 years old, is still not registered in registry books.

Despite the fact that many international bodies have for years been pointing out that this situation is inadmissible and that it violates the rights of the child, the competent authorities in Serbia do not show readiness to remedy this situation and amend the by-laws regulating birth notification and registration in registry books, including certain provisions that prevent the timely registration of children whose mothers do not have documents.

Unfortunately, Edita cannot hope that she will soon be able to obtain her documents. In 2020, she initiated the procedure for determining the citizenship of Serbia, but that procedure seems to be still at the very beginning. Although the law is on Edita's side also in this case, it is not consistently applied in practice. In fact, the Law on Citizenship of the Republic of Serbia stipulates that citizenship shall be acquired by a person whose both parents were citizens of Serbia at the time of his or her birth, or if one parent was a citizen of Serbia and the other is unknown or of unknown citizenship or stateless. Edita has a proof that her father is a citizen of Serbia, but she lacks such a proof for her mother, because the registry books in which her mother was registered after the 1999 war in Kosovo remained inaccessible to the authorities of the Republic of Serbia. Although more than 20 years have passed since then, the authorities have still not fulfilled their obligation and have not reconstructed all unavailable registry books. It is unnecessary to stress that citizens should not bear the consequences of the fact that the registry books have not been preserved or reconstructed. On top of all that, a large number of registry offices have recently stopped conducting procedures for re-registration of citizenship data, which were conducted at the request of citizens, and now it is only possible to conduct much more complicated, uncertain, lengthy and expensive procedures for determining citizenship before the Ministry of Interior.

However, even if we disregard this inadmissible situation due to which Edita cannot prove that her mother was a citizen of Serbia, the fact is that, based on her father's citizenship, Edita fulfils the condition for acquiring Serbian citizenship as a person whose one parent was a Serbian citizen and the other parent is stateless or of unknown citizenship. Nevertheless, the authority before which the procedure is being conducted informed Edita that her request for determining citizenship would not be accepted until the mother's citizenship was determined. And it seems very unlikely because Edita's mother is old and sick, lives abroad and most probably does not have the evidence that would be required in the procedure of determining citizenship.

Although laws should be instruments that guarantee citizens the exercise of their rights and that prevent arbitrary actions of state bodies and services, Edita did not have the opportunity to witness their effectiveness. On the contrary, although the law prescribes that she does not have to pay the costs of childbirth, she paid 900 euros; although the regulations require that every child must be registered in birth registry books immediately after birth, her two children are still unable to obtain a birth certificate; although she meets the legal requirements for Serbian citizenship, the question is whether she will ever be able to obtain it. Laws should also protect the most vulnerable and ensure the equality of citizens, but for Edita and her family, poverty-stricken members of the Roma national minority, not only has this purpose not been achieved, but the unlawful action has led to even greater marginalisation and deeper poverty, leaving her and her children without personal documents and without the opportunity to access most rights.

 [1] Her real name has been changed to protect her privacy.