M.S.B. was born in Azerbaijan. For over 30 years she lived in Ukraine with a passport from the former USSR. When the war in Ukraine started, she fled to the Republic of Moldova, but her identity documents did not allow her to move on to an EU country.
M.S.B. asked for help of CDA lawyers Mihai Gangan and Aliona Jeleznîi, who gave her the necessary legal assistance. Appropriate procedures followed to verify the legal status of the beneficiary in Azerbaijan and Ukraine, which found M.S.B.’s lack of citizenship of these countries.
Recently, the Bureau of Migration and Asylum recognized M.S.B.’s stateless status.
In another case a young man from Stefan Voda district, assisted by CDA lawyers, received a certificate confirming the applicant’s stateless status. The beneficiary was born in Ukraine 19 years ago, but, due to certain circumstances, he did not have any confirmatory documents based on which he could later be documented in the Republic of Moldova and obtain citizenship of our country. In the absence of a legal status, he was unable to enjoy many rights.
CDA legal advisers Mihai Gangan and Vasile Norosian helped him to obtain the certificate confirming the applicant’s stateless status. It’s just the first step in a series of long-lasting legal procedures to acquire Moldovan citizenship. But the young man is very grateful to our colleagues for this first victory, which opens the way to documentation, citizenship and to enjoying fundamental rights and freedoms.
The promotion and protection of the rights of stateless persons, persons at risk of becoming stateless and undocumented persons is an important direction in the work of CDA.
The organisation’s lawyers provide legal assistance to these categories of people, advising them and representing their interests in institutions and courts.
At present, CDA employees are working on more than thirty such cases, the beneficiaries being from Chisinau, Hincesti, Telenesti, Soroca, Drochia, Orhei, Ialoveni, Edinet, Stefan Voda, the eastern districts of the country. Obtaining citizenship, stateless status and identity cards means access to social services, education, health care, etc. and the realization of fundamental human rights and freedoms.
