Only after an employee of the Social Welfare Centre Novi Beograd verbally rejected to initiate the procedure for registration of residence at the address of the Social Welfare Centre for S.B., did the client address the Centre in writing with the request for registration at the address of the Centre. In addition, Praxis presented the case to Technical Group by pointing to illegal acting of the employee. Consequently, the registration of the permanent residence was approved to S.B., who had been deprived of that possibility for being the resident of the informal settlement.

See the announcement: Registration of Permanent Residence at the Address of Social Welfare Centre Novi Beograd – Unlawful Acting

On 10 April 2013, a seminar on birth registration, access to rights and protection against discrimination was held in Pozarevac for representatives and activists of Roma associations and organizations, Roma coordinators, health mediators and pedagogical assistants from Arandjelovac, Velika Plana, Kucevo, Veliko Gradiste, Smederevska Palanka, Smederevo, Kostolac and Pozarevac. The seminar, which was attended by 26 participants, was organized by Praxis within the project Legal Assistance to Persons at Risk of Statelessness in Serbia, funded by UNHCR.

Through presentation of cases and legal solutions in effect, Praxis representatives presented the possibilities for exercise and protection of status and socioeconomic rights. Afterwards, the participants discussed the problems they encounter in practice and exchanged experiences related to proceeding of competent services and bodies. It was pointed to individual cases of discrimination, suggestions were presented for overcoming the situations in which discriminatory proceeding threatens dignity of members of Roma national minority or hinders their access to basic human rights. The participants emphasised the usefulness of the conducted seminar, but it was also pointed to the need to undertake measures to additionally motivate Roma population, both in terms of acquainting them with available mechanisms for protection of their rights and in terms of readiness to take actual steps towards improvement of living conditions of the entire Roma community. At the end of the seminar, the participants were awarded certificates.

See: Agenda

The seminar on registration in birth registry books, access to rights and protection from discrimination was organized by UNHCR and Praxis for representatives and activists of Roma associations and organizations, Roma coordinators, health mediators and pedagogic assistants in the Centre of Professional Development (Municipality of Sabac) on 4 March 2013. The seminar was attended by 31 participants from Sabac, Koceljeva, Loznica, Bogatic, Krupanj, Macvanska Mitrovica, Ruma and Sremska Mitrovica. Praxis organized the seminar with an aim to realize the project Legal Aid to Persons at Risk of Statelessness in Serbia funded by UNHCR.

Praxis representatives tried through the analysis of cases from practice to familiarize the present with the most significant problems related to registration in birth registry books. It was pointed at the importance of the registration of child birth and subsequent birth registration of persons who failed to register on time. The court procedure for determination of time and place of birth envisaged by the Law on Amendments to the Law on Non-Contentious Procedure was thoroughly presented. In the same manner, the issues related to citizenship, registration of permanent and temporary residence, and circumstances of the possibility to access other rights – conditioned by the registration in birth registry books and possession of citizenship. The subject of presentation was also the familiarization with the mechanism of protection against discrimination. The identification of discrimination in concrete situations was presented through the simulation of cases. The mechanisms of protection of rights and manners in which they can be used were presented in a simple way with an aim to affirm the confirmation about their availability and expediency.

The possibilities of exercise and protection of rights from the stated area were presented through the interactive presentation of cases and positive legal solutions. In the final part of the seminar, the participants discussed about the problems encountered in practice and exchanged experiences in acting of competent bodies in implementation of applicable regulations. The seminar ended by awarding certificates to the participants.

See: Agenda

On the occasion of beginning of work on the Draft Law on Free Legal Aid, the Coalition for Access to Justice and civil society organizations express their hope that, after more than six years since the adoption of the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia, the citizens will finally be able to efficiently enjoy the constitutional right to legal aid.

We demand from the State to adhere to established European and other international standards in defining the circle of legal aid providers, the standards that do not allow monopolization of provision of legal aid services. According to those standards, new legal solutions in this field would have to enable provision of legal aid by the widest circle of providers traditionally including non-governmental organizations, trade unions, professional associations and legal clinics.

Article 67, Paragraph 2 of the Constitution is often interpreted in a way that suggests that the right to provision of legal aid services pertains solely to Bar-admitted lawyers and legal aid services organized within the local self-government units. Contrary to such interpretation, we emphasize that the stated provision of the Constitution only defines a circle of those who are obliged to provide legal aid, while it does not forbid others to provide this service as well.

We emphasise that non-governmental organizations, trade unions, professional associations and legal clinics have been successfully providing legal aid to the widest circle of beneficiaries for decades, especially to the victims of violations of basic human rights, work related rights, rights from marriage and family relations.  Bearing in mind their extensive experience, achieved results, level of recognition and the developed trust of citizens, it would be completely unjustified and unreasonable to exclude them from the circle of legal aid providers, and it would also lower the achieved level of respect and protection of human rights which is contrary to the Constitution.

We demand from the State to fully respect the achieved level of respect and protection of human rights in drafting the Law on Free Legal Aid, especially in defining the circle of legal aid providers, and to establish the system of legal aid that is in accordance with European and other international standards.


Coalition for Access to Justice:
Centre for Advanced Legal Studies
Civil Rights Defenders
CHRIS – the Network of Committees for Human Rights in Serbia (Human Rights Committee Nis, Human Rights Committee Valjevo, Human Rights Committee Negotin, Vojvodina Centre for Human Rights Novi Sad, Citizens' Forum Novi Pazar)
Humanitarian Law Centre
Youth Initiative for Human Rights
Independent Journalists' Association of Vojvodina
Sandzak Committee for Protection of Human Rights and Freedoms
Praxis

You can see the announcement of the Coalition for Access to Justice and the list of signatories HERE.

On 11 March 2013, the seminar on registration in birth registry book, access to rights and protection against discrimination was held in Vrsac for 26 participants – representatives and activists of Roma associations and organizations, Roma coordinators, health mediators and pedagogical assistants from Pancevo, Jabuka, Kovin, Zrenjanin, Alibunar, Ilandza, Nikolinac, Bela Crkva and Vrsac. The seminar was organized within the project Legal Assistance to Persons at Risk of Statelessness in Serbia, implemented by Praxis and funded by UNHCR.

After presentations of Praxis representatives on the above stated subjects, the mechanisms of exercise and protection of rights were described through the interactive presentation of cases and positive legal solutions.

In the final part of the seminar, the participants discussed about the problems encountered in practice and also exchanged experience in acting of competent services and bodies in the implementation of applicable regulations.

There was also a discussion about the cases of discrimination and some discriminatory procedures that affected pupils of Roma nationality in schools in the region. The participants were highly interested and took an active approach to subjects they discussed about and showed willingness to cooperate.

See: Dnevni red

Only after ten months from Praxis submission of an appeal and following an urgency letter for not proceeding upon the appeal did the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy respond that there was no legal basis for amendment of the existing Rulebook on Work Booklet but only for adoption of a new one. The Ministry also informed us that they would take Praxis appeal into consideration in the procedure of the adoption of a new Rulebook.

In its notice, the Ministry emphasised that a person who had found employment in the place of his/her temporary residence, but did not possess a work booklet, could address the competent body in his/her place of employment for issuance of a work booklet, and that the work booklet was not a precondition for employment. However, the Ministry completely ignored the fact that the possession of a work booklet is a precondition for registering with the National Employment Service (NES) and that persons who do not possess this document cannot receive help in finding employment or benefit from any other service of the NES. The Ministry also stated that there were initiatives to abolish the work booklet. However, this has not happened, the new Rulebook has not been adopted and the disputable provision of the present Rulebook is still in force and it either prevents or hinders refugees’ and IDPs’ chances to obtain a work booklet.

To remind ourselves, on 2 February 2012 Praxis submitted and Appeal to the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy for amendment of the Article 5, Paragraph 1 of the Rulebook on Work Booklet (Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia, No. 17/97). According to Article 5, Paragraph 1 of the Rulebook, an unemployed person submits a request for issuance of a work booklet to the competent municipal administration body in his/her place of permanent residence, while the employed person submits the same request in the place of his/her employment. Consistent application of this article results in unemployed refugees and IDPs having to travel to their place of permanent residence to submit a request for issuance of a work booklet, which is an insurmountable problem for them. The stated provision of the Rulebook indirectly discriminates against refugees and IDPs because it deprives them of or hinders their exercise of the right to work booklet. As a result, they cannot be beneficiaries of the programmes and services of the NES.

The stated appeal suggests amendment of the Article 5, Paragraph 1 of the Rulebook on Work Booklet in a way so as to extend the territorial jurisdiction for submission of a request for issuance of work booklet to the competent administrative body in the submitter’s place of temporary residence.

See: Appeal for amendment of Article 5, Paragraph 1 of the Rulebook on Work Booklet
See: Response from the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy

Coalition for Monitoring Child Rights with the cooperation of Praxis provided Joint Submission for the UPR of Serbia, 15th Session, 21st January – 1st February 2013.

Child rights state in Serbia have been improving constantly since late 1990, however in a period covered by this Submission several dissonant processes took place. Coordination of national efforts for children has been decreased, budget allocations had also been decreased, and the system for overall implementation is not significantly improved. However, there were a lot of efforts regarding social inclusion of children from vulnerable groups including children in juvenile justice system and protection of children from violence and exploitation.

The specific issues covered by the Submission include equality and nondiscrimination, pointing out difficulties in birth registration and poor condition for development of Roma children, and lack of efficiency in social inclusion support system. It covers right to life, safety and freedom of children emphasising necessity of corporal punishment prohibition and lack of specialised services for children who are victims of violence and children in juvenile justice facilities. Right to privacy, marriage and family life is also one of the priorities, putting in perspective specific problems of children living in foster and adoptive families. Lack of specialised services for children with behavioral problems and violation of right to highest standard of health care of children with diabetes is also described in social security and standard of living section. But the crosscutting issue for all children in Serbia is poor, outdated and not fully inclusive educational system which does not ensure right to education on equal opportunity bases and does not ensure quality education for children in Serbia.

See: Joint Submission

On 10 May 2013, the training on registration in birth registry book was held for registrars and deputy registrars administering the registry books for the areas in the territory of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, as well as for the administrative officers working on issues related to citizenship, registration of permanent and temporary residence and issuance of ID cards within the organizational units of the Ministry of Interior and employees of social welfare centres in Vojvodina. The training for approximately 170 participants was organized by the Technical Group, formed based on the Memorandum of Understanding concluded between the Ministry of Justice and Public Administration, Ombudsperson and UNHCR, in accordance with the Activity Plan the aim of which is eradication of the phenomenon of legally invisible persons in Serbia by 2015.

Representatives of the Ministry of Justice and Public Administration, Ombudsperson, UNHCR, Praxis, Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Policy drew attention of the present participants to the importance of possession of documentation and consequences of life without documentation. They also presented the most frequent problems in practice which are of significance for realization of goals specified in the aforementioned Memorandum of Understanding.  The stated issues were analysed with reference to the changes in the domestic legislation which occurred as a part of the process of European integrations. New solutions contained in the Law on Permanent and Temporary Residence of Citizens (primarily the envisaged possibility to register permanent residence at the address of a social welfare centre for persons who do not have other option to regulate this issue), the Law on ID Card, the Law on Non-Contentious Procedure (new procedure for determination of time and place of birth which is a basis for registration in birth registry book) reflect the general tendency to facilitate the access to basic status rights. Representatives of the aforementioned state bodies and institutions presented to the participants of the training available mechanisms and means they should rely on in their work, in order to conduct the procedures of subsequent birth registration, registration of the fact of citizenship in citizenship registry books and the procedures before the social welfare centres in as simple and efficient manner as possible.

In the final part of the training, the participants discussed the insufficiently clear aspects in the concerned field. The dilemmas the present participants pointed to mainly referred to the possibility of registration of residence at the address of the social welfare centre. What remains unclear is whether only persons who do not have permanent residence registered in the territory of Serbia will be able to register permanent residence at the address of a social welfare centre, or this new legal solution will also be applicable to internally displaced persons who have permanent residence registered in Kosovo. Even though there has still not been any progress in terms of precisely defining disputable provisions of the by-laws which stand in the way of consistent implementation of newly adopted solutions, representatives of relevant ministries said that this problem would soon be overcome through a joint agreement. The achievement of the proclaimed goals will depend on efforts of all competent bodies and services, both at the normative level and the level of application of adopted solutions in practice.

After more than a year since the Government of Serbia adopted the General Protocol for Action and cooperation of institutions, bodies and organizations in cases of violence against women in the family and in intimate partner relationships in November 2011, the remaining special protocols have also been adopted. Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Policy, Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development drafted and adopted special protocols giving guidelines for proceeding of professionals in the system of protection of women against violence in the family and in intimate partner relationship. Adoption of protocols has also marked the beginning of realization of goals of the previously adopted National Strategy for Prevention and Elimination of Violence against Women, envisaged within the third strategic field dedicated to improvement of multisectoral cooperation and building capacities of the bodies and specialized services.

It is expected that the adoption and primarily the implementation of the General and special protocols will significantly improve the institutional system of protection of women against violence in the family and in intimate partner relationships.

See (Serbian only)
 Poseban protokol Ministarstva unutrašnjih poslova, Poseban protokol Ministarstva rada zapošljavanja i socijalne politike, Poseban protokol Ministarstva zdravlja, Poseban protokol Ministarstva prosvete, nauke i tehnološkog razvoja, Opšti protokol o postupanju i saradnji ustanova, organa i organizacija u situacijama nasilja nad ženama u porodici i u partnerskim odnosima

A number of Romani families are still living in unsanitary and degrading conditions a full year after being forcibly evicted from their Belgrade settlement. Praxis and the European Roma Rights Centre are highlighting the situation of many of the Roma evicted from Belvil, who do not have adequate housing and do not have any support in the process of integration. The NGOs are also calling on Serbian authorities to halt forced evictions and to find positive and sustainable solutions for all those evicted to date.

One year ago, approximately 1000 Roma were forcibly evicted from the Belgrade settlement near Belvil, Roma with an address registered in Belgrade, approximately half of those evicted, were resettled in metal containers in the city. The other half (133 Romani families) were forced to return to their previous places of permanent residence. Most families returned to small, impoverished municipalities in the south of Serbia.

In Nis, local authorities provided three families with accommodation in an abandoned warehouse, where they faced three months without water, and eight months without electricity. The families continue to live in very difficult and unhygienic conditions incompatible with international standards on adequate alternative accommodation, as highlighted by the Commissioner for Equality Protection last year. In addition, all of the affected families in Nis lack security of tenure; none of them have received any formal document regulating their stay in the facilities provided by local authorities. This makes them vulnerable to potential new evictions.

Roma resettled in Belgrade have generally fared better than those who were sent to the south, however some have faced attacks. On 1 May 2012, around 15 to 20 masked individuals attacked the settlement in Jabučki Rit, where some Belvil residents were moved to. The masked men shouted racist slogans including "Serbia for Serbs, Roma out of Serbia" and drew a swastika on one of the metal containers where the Roma were living.

Forced evictions continue to take place in Belgrade, contrary to international human rights standards. Since April 2012, at least 27 families (101 Romani men, women and children) have been evicted from informal settlements in Belgrade, including the eviction of residents of the container settlements based on criteria that the Commissioner for Equality Protection found to be discriminatory.

The ERRC and Praxis welcome the efforts of the City of Belgrade and the European Commission to find sustainable and adequate housing solutions for the evicted Roma who were placed in container settlements in Belgrade. Authorities must also act to provide adequate accommodation for Roma who were sent to the south of Serbia.

The government and local authorities should halt forced evictions, adopt the legal framework on evictions in line with international human rights law and, with the assistance of the international community, secure sufficient resources to guarantee fulfillment of the right to adequate housing especially for vulnerable groups, including Roma.

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