As UNHCR implementing partners within the Project “Social Inclusion: Regional Support to Marginalized Communities”, the organizations Civil Rights Programme, Kosovo, Association “Vasa prava BIH”, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Civil Society Research Centre, Macedonia, Legal Centre, Montenegro, and Praxis, Serbia, have signed a regional MoU in order to formalize and strengthen regional ties ad promote cross-border/boundary cooperation to issues linked to social inclusion of Roma, Ashkali and Eguptians (RAE)  communities and other marginalized groups in the Western Balkans.

The cooperation is aimed at contributing to prevention and reduction of statelessness in the region and reduction of persons at risk of statelessness, which particularly affects the RAE population, especially those displaced during the conflicts in the region. Finally, the cooperation should contribute towards the social inclusion of RAE and other marginalized groups and to their full enjoyment of human rights in the region of the Western Balkans.

In February 2008, Association Roma in Exodus from Kosovo and Metohija and Praxis signed the Memorandum of Understanding with the aim to closely cooperate on issues related to prevention of statelessness and reduction of statelessness persons in Serbia and prevention, legal protection and reduction of the number of “legally invisible” persons in Serbia. 

Association Roma in Exodus from Kosovo and Metohija is a domestic non-governmental organization working on protection of human rights of internally displaced persons in Serbia, more specifically in obtaining personal documents, exercising right to health care, social welfare and children’s allowance, registering permanent or temporary residence and registering children in birth registry books.

The cooperation between Association Roma in Exodus from Kosovo and Metohija and Praxis has been agreed with the aim to contribute to social inclusion and enjoyment of basic human rights of the Roma population in Serbia.

Praxis became a member of the Coalition for Free Access to Information, which arose from the need to, through a joint action and support from the civil society and citizens as individual, put pressure on the authorities in Serbia – the Government and National Assembly, to adopt the Law on Free Access to Information as soon as possible. Members of the Coalition greatly contributed to bringing a law which would guarantee every citizen of Serbia freedom of access to information available to authorities. The Coalition continues its work which will be especially important in the process of implementation of the Law.

Free access to information of public importance is a condition for quality and efficient enjoyment of other rights and freedoms (freedom of thought, right to information, voter’s right, etc) and is an irreplaceable instrument for monitoring the work of the authorities. This right opens the way to citizens to take part in doing public duties and in the decision making process, truly and responsibly and without an intermediary, as well as to influence their content and efficient implementation.

You can read more about the Coalition here.

Praxis and School for Primary Education of Adults “Djuro Salaj“ from Belgrade have signed the agreement on mutual cooperation on the Project “SECOND CHANCE” – Development of the system of functional primary education of adults above 15 years of age in Serbia, which will be implemented by this school.

The goal of this agreement is to provide support and partnership on the Project “SECOND CHANCE” for the purpose of the implementation of the first project cycle in school year 2011-2012 on the territory of municipalities of the city of Belgrade.

During the project “SECOND CHANCE”, non-governmental organization Praxis is bound to provide free legal assistance to attendees of the project in obtaining basic personal documents necessary to enroll in the school and to cooperate with project mobile teams, which will consist of representatives of relevant institutions supporting the realization of the project.

Being DRC's sub-contractor in the EAR-funded project Support to the Repatriation and Reintegration Process of Refugees Currently in Serbia to Croatia and BH, Praxis co-facilitated, together with DRC and SDF the Advocacy Campaign: Repatriation to Croatia – Solving of Remaining Housing Related Issues that took place on April 7. The participants of the campaign were the representatives of Serbian and Croatian governments, international NGOs, Embassies and NGOs from Serbia and Croatia. The successful campaign resulted with the main recommendations given by the participants to the governments of the Republic of Croatia and the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro related to the repossession of property, housing care and reconstruction of houses in Croatia, as well as on the Declaration signed at the Ministerial Conference on Refugee Return (on January 31, 2005 in Sarajevo). Some of the main recommendations were to speed up the processes of property repossession, allocation of housing care and reconstruction in Croatia in order to enable the return of refugees as soon as possible in line of the above-mentioned Ministerial Conference, as well as to establish cooperation between the governments of Croatia and Serbia and Montenegro with the aim of informing the displaced Croatian Serbs about housing issues in Croatia.

Download: Repatriation to Croatia - Solving of Remaining Housing Issue

Praxis submitted Comments on UNMIK's Protection of ICCPR-guaranteed Rights in Relation to Certain Aspects of Private Immovable Property Claims Resolution in Kosovo to the United Nations Human Rights Committee.

Download: Comments on UNMIK's Protection of ICCPR-guaranteed Rights

Download: HERE 

Praxis submitted Recommendations to OHCHR Belgrade on the occasion of adopting Concluding Observations of the Human Rights Committee on Kosovo

Related to PROPERTY (Section 18 of the Concluding Observations)

• UNMIK, in cooperation with PISG, should establish effective legal remedies for challenging the final decisions of the Housing and Property Commission, and it should ensure and facilitate displaced persons’ access to the remedies.
• UNMIK, in cooperation with PISG, should consider establishing new, clear and credible arrangements in respect to resolution of private immovable property claims (currently conducted by Kosovo Property Agency). In the meantime, it should ensure effective access of displaced persons to the existing mechanism.
• UNMIK, in cooperation with PISG, should ensure prompt and effective regaining of possession over owned property, in particular in cases of re-possession requested by displaced persons and members of minority communities.
• UNMIK, in cooperation with PISG, should ensure prompt registration of civil suits filed before the courts in Kosovo and immediate provision of due registration notices to the interested persons, in accordance with the principle of non-discrimination.

Related to DOCUMENTS

• UNMIK, in cooperation with PISG, should ensure that administrative and judicial bodies in Kosovo recognize and accept documents duly issued and/or verified by Serbian authorities, in particularly those required for conduct of inheritance procedures in Kosovo.
• UNMIK, in cooperation with PISG and KFOR, should ensure unimpeded and effective access to available documentary archives of Kosovo courts, companies and institutions containing personal and other files related to, inter alia, property, education, employment and pension, in accordance with the principle of non-discrimination.

Related to LANGUAGE (Section 22)

• UNMIK should ensure that PISG respect the right of minority communities that all official documents are promptly and properly translated into their language. In particular, it should ensure that the documents relevant for effective participation in court procedures (court minutes etc.) should be issued translated within a reasonable time.

Download: Concluding Observations of the Human Rights Committee

UNHCR and its legal and other implementation and operational partner, Praxis, Balkan Centre for Migration, Centre for Minority Rights, OSCE, MPDL and HCIT formed a Focus Group on IDP Documentation with the overall aim to achieve systemic changes in the field of IDPs’ access to documentation, through strong advocacy.

At the first meeting of the Focus Group that was held in May, the Group agreed to come up with a set of detailed suggestions to amendments of law(s) and procedures to address IDP's problems in accessing documents. For that purpose, the Group invited a consultant - legal expert from the Centre for Advanced Legal Studies, to discuss drafting of a new law that would regulate this issue. Focus Group intends to engage local legal experts and practitioners who would analyze the existing legislation and make specific recommendations to legislative amendments in order to simplify the access to documentation and civil registration of IDPs into registry books dislocated from Kosovo.

As a part of its advocacy campaign, in July 2007 the Focus Group held a meeting with the Assistant Minister for Public Administration and Local Self-Government, with the aim to present to the Ministry Focus Group’s initiative for removing obstacles to IDPs’ access to documents and to seek the Ministry’s initial support to the activity. Members of Focus Group agreed with the Assistant Minister to share its analysis and specific recommendations with the Ministry for further discussion and action. However, it has been stressed at the meeting that the solution to the problems of IDPs related to access to documents and, more specifically, determining the fact of birth and subsequent registration is not only within the jurisdiction of the Ministry for Public Administration and Local Self-Government, but also within the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Interior.

More such meetings will continue with other stakeholders in the Government including the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Interior.

As part of its activities within the Focus Group on IDP Documentation, UNHCR, Praxis and Balkan Centre for Migrations met with the representatives of the Ministry of Interior (MoI) of the Republic of Serbia on 11th October 2007. The aim of the meeting was to introduce the representatives of the Ministry with the initiative of the Focus Group to ease access to personal documents for internally displaced persons in Serbia. Focus Group presented its activities related to drafting of legislative amendments in order to achieve systemic changes in the field of IDPs access to documentation. Praxis had previously prepared a handout illustrating everyday problems IDPs face in obtaining documents, and shared it with the representatives of the Ministry. The Group also announced the organization of the Round Table on Subsequent Registration that is due to take place in early December. Project on Automation of Dislocated Registry Offices, funded by the Bureau for Population, Refugees and Migrations of the US Department of State, which is being undertaken in the municipalities of Kragujevac and Krusevac (administering the dislocated registry books from Kosovo), was also presented to the Ministry. There are plans to implement the same project in the Municipality of Kraljevo next year.

Ms Zorica Kasalica-Loncar, Head of the Administrative Department of MoI, expressed satisfaction with the cooperation between the Administrative Department and UNHCR. Ms Kasalica-Loncar also praised the Project on Automation of Dislocated Registry Books, which significantly reduced the backlog and eased the process of obtaining documents from the two dislocated registry offices. She also showed great interest in the work of the Focus Group. As she stated, the Ministry has a clear interest in providing documents to all citizens of the Republic of Serbia, but she emphasized the need for raising awareness among vulnerable categories, especially Roma population, on importance of possessing personal documents. Ms Kasalica-Loncar informed the participants on the new Law on Temporary and Permanent Residence, which is currently being drafted, and expressed interest in receiving suggestions of the Group. In addition, the Ministry of Interior accepted to participate at the aforementioned Round Table on Subsequent Registration.