He sees their future in Lithuania. He has no complaints against the authorities, other than the issue of the permanent residence permit. “It would make my and my daughter’s life much easier. And it would give us a sense of security,” he says. There is a need to look into why the 36 stateless children reportedly living in Lithuania lack a nationality, especially when 16 of them were born in the country. 2.3.6 Hopes and expectations for the future CASE STUDY139 V.B., female, 61 years old Country of birth: Belarus V.B. moved to Lithuania from Belarus in 1970, because there were more work opportunities. As explained in section 2.3.4 above, she struggles to find a reason why she did not “opt” for Lithuanian citizenship to which she was entitled through the “zero option”. In 1994, she received a permanent residence permit. In the late 1990s, she developed a dependency on alcohol, which eventually drastically changed her life. Her husband left her and moved to the United States with their daughter. V.B. says that before leaving, her husband sold the flat where she lived and she was rendered homeless. She receives around 100 Euro in benefits per month, which is not enough to rent her own place. V.B. had never considered acquiring Belarusian citizenship because she did not have relevant links to the country anymore. She described what would have been required of her to qualify for the naturalization procedure to acquire Lithuanian citizenship: “ I would have to take the exam, and all this money. (…) I have difficulties even getting the money to renew the permit every several years. I know a passport would not solve my situation.” At the time of the interview she was homeless and had no family in Vilnius or Belarus that could help her. V.B. said she was lonely and felt insecure and helpless because she could not fight her addiction. Asked about her future, V.B. was very pessimistic: “In the future? I will die.” V.B.’s pessimism about the future was echoed by several other participants who were socially excluded or at risk thereof: convicts, destitute persons and elderly persons. People who had a family and stable income were much more optimistic and were able to formulate their hopes for the future. They often mentioned their children, work and acquiring property. Despite what is believed by some officials, stateless persons in Lithuania are affected by this status and would like to see change. The procedures to acquire citizenship take, however, much time and effort, and are for many too expensive. Stateless persons living in Lithuania generally report feeling Lithuanian and would like to have this feeling formalized into legal status as Lithuanian citizens. 139 Interviewed on 7 September 2012. U N H C R S TO C K H O L M , M AY 2 0 1 6 39