G.T.B. v. SPAIN JUDGMENT 2003-IX (extracts), see also paragraph 113 above) and educational level. Not being able to establish details of a person’s identity thus interferes with personal autonomy and is directly related to the right to respect for private life as established under Article 8 of the Convention. The importance of obtaining birth registration and, as a consequence, other valid identity documents has also been underlined by other international bodies. In its General comment No. 13 (2011) on “The right of the child to freedom from all forms of violence”, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child clearly indicated that the lack of birth registration can be a form of neglect and of negligent treatment when those responsible for the child’s care have the means, knowledge and access to services to do so (see paragraph 80 above). In the light of the above, the Court concludes that the right to respect for private life under Article 8 of the Convention should be seen as including, in principle, an individual right to have one’s birth registered and as a consequence, where relevant, to have access to other identity documents. 119. The right to obtain a birth certificate and, on its basis, other identity documents from the relevant State authorities for persons under their jurisdiction is of course subject to the individual concerned fulfilling a number of substantive and procedural requirements provided for by domestic law. Such requirements may naturally include a rule that the issuance of identity documents must be requested by the person concerned, his/her legal representatives, or any other person or institution designated by law. The Court is of the view that safeguarding the consistency and reliability of civil registries and, more broadly, legal certainty, is an important goal in the general interest and justifies, as a matter of principle, strict procedures to register birth, in particular, when it has taken place outside the concerned State’s territory. For the Court, States enjoy a wide margin of appreciation concerning the appropriate means of securing the enjoyment of the right to birth registration and access to identity documents flowing from Article 8 of the Convention, but as long as the relevant legal requirements are met, the State is under an obligation to issue birth certificates and access to other related identity documents in order to preserve the right to respect for private life. 120. In the present case, there is no doubt that under Spanish law, the legal procedure to register a persons’ birth and, subsequently, to obtain identity documents was clear and foreseeable (see paragraphs 72–75 above). The Court also observes that, under Spanish law, in normal circumstances the primary responsibility for undertaking the necessary administrative steps for registration of birth and obtaining identity documents of a child lie on the parents (see paragraph 72 above). 121. The applicant does not appear to contest the justification for and the foreseeability of the Spanish legal requirements for the registration of births, but considers that in his specific situation their strict application without 32

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