From Legal Limbo to Legal Certainty: Stateless Family in Montenegro Secures Legal Status after a 25-Year Struggle

By Mensur Bajramspahic 

For Sadik Hasani (30) and his family of seven, the journey out of legal invisibility in Montenegro has been a saga spanning over 25 years. Fleeing from Kosovo[1] in 1999, the Hasani family, including Sadik who was 6 at the time, found themselves without identity documents, depriving them of basic human rights and services that most of us take for granted. The breakthrough came early this year when, with UNHCR’s support, Sadik’s wife Buqa obtained identity documents. This enabled the registration of their five children in birth registries and paved the way for them to apply for identity documents. The new legal status has opened new frontiers for the family, granting them access to healthcare, education, social assistance, and more. 

“All these years, my family suffered because we did not exist in the eyes of the law. Now I feel like I am not letting my family down anymore. Now my children will be able to go to a doctor or attend school. I am overjoyed,” said Sadik with relief. 

Living without legal status was particularly challenging for Sadik’s children. They were born in Montenegro but lacked citizenship and its associated rights. During the precious childhood years, statelessness can create enduring problems, limiting opportunities and exposing children to discrimination. Sadik did his best to support his family by performing various manual jobs, including work at the farmer’s market or by installing ceramics and laminates. Despite his best efforts, the children often felt like outcasts, living in dilapidated makeshift settlement. Sadik’s wife, Buqa, wanted to create opportunities for her children to have a better life than she ever could. 

“As a mother, I want my children to have the best future possible and I know that education is crucial for that. Now that my children have personal documentation, this will open possibilities for them to pursue opportunities that were out of reach for me and my husband. But more than just getting documents; this is all about giving my children a chance to realize their dreams and create a better life for themselves,” said Buqa. 

The collaboration between UNHCR and the Consulate of Kosovo, established in 2019, played a crucial role in regularizing the legal status of Sadik’s children. With UNHCR’s support, the children were registered in Kosovo’s citizenship registry through its consular services in Montenegro, paving the way for them to obtain identification documents - a prerequisite for residency status in Montenegro. 

“Stateless children live in a world where their status profoundly affects their ability to learn, grow, and fulfil their ambitions and dreams for the future. Unresolved legal status not only denies them rights but also significantly increases the risk of discrimination and perpetuates socio-economic vulnerability. It is heartwarming for us to see that, with UNHCR’s assistance, Sadik’s family, and especially the children, will now be able to achieve stable legal status. If we hope for a better future for the next generation, the children of this generation must be a meaningful part of the present," said Jean-Yves Bouchardy, UNHCR Representative to Montenegro.

Being unrecognized as a citizen of any country can create insurmountable barriers to basic human rights, stifling life prospects. Statelessness can often have a devastating psychological toll on young people and can be passed down from parents to children, entrapping entire generations in legal limbo. This is why the acquisition of identity documents marks a turning point for Sadik’s family. His story serves as a poignant reminder of the transformative power of legal recognition and the enduring hope it offers to those long deprived of basic rights. 

Despite numerous achievements and progress, 400 individuals - predominantly Roma and Egyptian - are at risk of statelessness in Montenegro. UNHCR’s collaborative efforts with the Ministry of Interior, diplomatic and consular missions of neighbouring countries and territories, and NGOs aim to provide targeted assistance for legal status regularization, primarily through the provision of free legal aid, financial assistance and administrative support.
 

[1] References to Kosovo shall be understood to be in the context of UN Security Council Resolution 1244(1999)