that the Law on Amendments to the Law on Non-Contentious Procedure12 provide for the procedure of determining the date and place of birth based on which all persons who are not registered in the birth registries and who, at the same time, cannot provide evidence of their birth as stipulated under the regulations on administering the birth registries, may submit a motion for determining the date and place of birth to the court. 6. The submitting organisations recognise and appreciate all the efforts made by the state of Serbia, especially those related to the adoption of the Law on Amendments to the Law on Non-Contentious Procedure which makes it possible to determine the fact of birth for persons who had not been able to register for years. However, the State report did not refer to comments by Praxis related to still unresolved issues and the need for further improvements in exercising the right to birth registration and nationality. Specifically, Praxis, together with Centre for Children’s Rights, was invited in 2012 by the Office for Human and Minorities Rights, which coordinated the preparation of the State report, to take part in the drafting process. In December 2012, Praxis sent comments and information about its experience, as well as about various unresolved issues in relation to Articles 2 and 7 CRC. Feedback from the Office for Human and Minority Rights was received one and a half years later, and a new meeting was held in July 2014. Praxis again sent in comments in relation to gaps and issues in accessing the rights guaranteed under Article 7 CRC. However, these comments were not included in the state report. Hence, this alternate report provides the Committee with further information to complement and fill out the gaps in the state party report. Statelessness in Serbia13 7. Several categories of children are particularly at risk of statelessness in the Republic of Serbia. These include children who have not been registered in birth registries, children of undetermined citizenship and those who were registered in registry books that were lost or remain unavailable to the authorities of Serbia. The great majority of these children belong to the Roma community, which lives in deep poverty and social exclusion, exposed to discriminatory treatment in almost every area of life. 8. Statelessness and the risk of statelessness is an issue that the Republic of Serbia has made efforts to address. Legislative changes and better practices have helped to both prevent new cases of statelessness and find solutions for persons who have been living without citizenship or proof of citizenship for many years. However, some gaps still remain, which must be addressed to fully resolve statelessness in the country. In particular, in order to prevent childhood statelessness and to fulfil obligations stemming from Serbia’s international obligations and its constitution, it is still necessary to ensure that every child is registered at birth without discrimination and regardless of status of his/her parents. 9. In addition to the CRC, Serbia is party to the core international human rights treaties, including the ICCPR, the ICESCR, ICERD, CEDAW, CRPD, CAT. Serbia is also party to the 1954 Convention on the Status of Stateless Persons and acceded to the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness in 2011. 10. The Constitution of the Republic of Serbia guarantees to everyone the right to legal personality and to every child the right to a name and the right to be registered in the birth registries. The Constitution also in effect provides a guarantee against statelessness, through Article 38 which prescribes that “Acquiring and terminating citizenship of the Republic of Serbia shall be regulated by the law. A citizen of the Republic of Serbia may not be expelled or deprived of citizenship or the right to change it. Any child born in the Republic of Serbia shall have the right to citizenship of the Republic of Serbia“. 12 The Law on Amendments to the Law on Non-Contentious Procedure, the Official Gazette of RS, 85/2012 According to Article 1.1 of the 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons, a stateless person is someone “who is not considered as a national by any state under the operation of its law.” The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees estimates more than 10 million people worldwide are stateless and without the protection of any state. 13 3