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Case Watch: A Victory for Refugee Protection in Europe
With a landmark judgment, the European Court of Human Rights finally debunked one of the great myths about Europe's treatment of asylum seekers.
Human Rights: How Far Have We Come?
On the 60th anniversary of World Human Rights Day, the date when the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted by the UN, how far have we come in realizing that document's promise?
Dominicans of Haitian Descent and the Compromised Right to Nationality
The Open Society Justice Initiative presented this report to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, highlighting systematic discrimination in the Dominican Republic.
Omerovic and Others v. Italy
In 2008 Italy introduced emergency legislation that applied only to Roma. The Omerovic family brought a legal action with nine other claimants to challenge this discriminatory treatment.
Hearing on Roma Discrimination in Italy Marks Progress, but Crisis Unresolved
A hearing on the case of Omerovic and Others v. Italy, filed in cooperation with the Open Society Justice Initiative, marks the first time testimony has been presented in court to challenge Italy’s Nomad Emergency Decree for unfairly targeting...
The Nubian Predicament: A Story about Colonial Legacy, Discrimination, and Statelessness
According to a recent survey, more than 99 percent of Nubians in Kenya identify themselves as Kenyan. But the government thinks otherwise.
Europe’s Union Riven by Government Attacks on Minorities
Roma in Italy, burqas in France, minarets in Switzerland: the idea of European citizenship recedes with each affront to equality and solidarity.
Groups Call on Czech Minister to Desegregate Schools
The Czech government should take immediate action to implement the European Court of Human Rights judgment in the case of D.H. and Others, urged a letter sent to the newly appointed Minister of Education by the Open Society Justice Initiative and...
Stateless in Slovenia
Milan Makuc became homeless after his name—along with those of more than 18,000 other Slovenians—were deleted by the government from its official registry of residents. Eighteen years later a human rights court rectified this decision, but it came...
The Struggle Against Statelessness Advances in Strasbourg
Eighteen years ago, as the country of Yugoslavia began to break apart, Mustafa Kuric became stateless. Last week, the European Court of Human Rights took a small step toward redressing the injustice that Kuric and thousands of other long-term...
Groundbreaking Decision on Statelessness in Europe
The European Court of Human Rights acknowledged the need to avoid making people stateless in its decision on Kuric and Others v. Slovenia.
Kafka in the Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic harshly penalizes its citizens of Haitian descent because they do not have identity cards--documentation which the government (in violation of international law) refuses to issue to them.
Bueno v. Dominican Republic
This case is about statelessness in the Dominican Republic. It focuses on a Dominican man who was denied identity documents because he was of Haitian descent.
Thousands Stripped of Citizenship in the Dominican Republic
A case challenging the Dominican Republic's treatment of its citizens of Haitian ancestry was filed before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights by the Open Society Justice Initiative and the Center for Justice and International Law.
Nubian Community in Kenya v. Kenya
Africa's human rights tribunal found that members of Kenya's Nubian community face arbitrary procedures that restrict their access to vital national identity documents.
Europe's Highest Court Rules Roma School Segregation by Language Illegal
The European Court of Human Rights held in the case Oršuš and Others v. Croatia that the segregation of Romani children into separate classes based on language is unlawful discrimination.
We Are Dominicans
For Dominicans of Haitian descent, obtaining proof of citizenship—required for everything from education to employment to voting—has become a legal and bureaucratic impossibility.
HP v. Denmark
HP was tortured for years in Iran before fleeing the country and coming to Denmark. Yet for more than 15 years, he was denied the citizenship of his adopted country, where he has lived for decades.
Continued Segregation in Czech Schools Devastates Lives of Roma Children
The Czech Republic can set a much-needed example for the rest of Europe by following through on its commitment to integrate its educational system, said the Open Society Justice Initiative today.
Lack of Citizenship Rights a Major Cause of Conflict in Africa
The lack of citizenship rights generates conflict and undermines democracy in many countries in Africa, according to two new studies by the Open Society Institute.