T H E F ormer yugoslav republic of macedonia In an informal settlement made up of makeshift homes by the river Vardar, Roma children are playing with empty plastic bottles. The settlement is referred to as ‘Pod Kale’, which means “under the fortress” in Macedonian. “We collect plastic bottles and make 100-200 denars a day (less than 4 US Dollars) but we cannot save for tomorrow. We don’t get any support from the State”, explains Lasho Nasifi, a 24-year-old stateless Roma man. “This is our homeland... we are not from elsewhere.” The origins of the Romani people can be traced back to northern India. During the thirteenth to fifteenth centuries they migrated to Europe, including to what is today The former Yugoslav Republic of | The Roma and other ethnic minorities Macedonia. Roma form the largest group among the ethnic minorities in the country that are stateless or at risk of statelessness. Official numbers indicate that there are 54,000 Roma in the country, although unofficial estimates range from 110,000 to 260,000. The Roma have a unique ethnic identity and speak the Romani language in addition to Macedonian, which distinguishes them from the majority Macedonian-speaking population. The statelessness of the Roma and other ethnic minorities is linked, in part, to the dissolution of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in the early 1990s. The Law on Citizenship of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, enacted in November 1992, provided that citizens of the predecessor republic automatically became citizens of the newly created state. Those who were legally residing in the The Roma and other ethnic minorities territory of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia at the time of the dissolution could acquire nationality by applying for naturalization within one year. Many missed this short window of opportunity, largely due to lack of awareness, often remaining unaware of the fact that they were not citizens of the State in which they continued to live. As Haidar Osmani, a 54-year-old ethnic Albanian born in Skopje in 1963, recounts, “When they [the authorities] were giving Macedonian citizenship, those who didn’t know about it, did not apply for it.” As a result, many became foreigners in the country in which they were born and had spent most of their lives. Apart from the consequences of the break-up of the former Yugoslavia, lack of birth certificates and other forms of identity documentation significantly affect the Roma community and their access to nationality, | T H E F ormer yugoslav republic of macedonia not only in The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia but across south-eastern Europe. Trapped in a cycle where parents’ lack of documentation obstructs the registration of their children, they have no means of proving their entitlement to citizenship. This often results in a combination of poverty and lack of education coupled with poor levels of awareness of the procedures and requirements for documentation and ongoing discrimination. As Sherafedin Sejfula, a 54-year-old Roma man explains: “Discrimination against the Roma is widespread. It is everywhere, in police stations, hospitals, schools. Everyone has priority over you. They [public administration] have an arrogant approach from the start. They always tell you to leave. But this is our homeland, our grandparents were born here, we are not from elsewhere.” Roma children playing at Pod Kale settlement, Skopje, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. 22 • UNHCR STATELESSNESS REPORT 2017 2017 UNHCR STATELESSNESS REPORT • 23