In Brazil, court ruling sheds light on the story of an undocumented and stateless woman

Global Voices reports on a Brazilian court ruling that recognized the right to residency for a woman identified only as Maria, who was brought to Brazil from Bolivia as a child roughly forty years ago and never held any identity documents. The First Federal Court of Corumbá ruled in her favor through family reunification, since she has three Brazilian children, and ordered authorities to begin formally recognizing her as stateless rather than demanding paperwork she has no way to obtain. The presiding judge noted that, on paper, she simply didn't exist for either the Brazilian or Bolivian state. Per the Ministry of Justice, only 58 statelessness cases have been formally reviewed in Brazil since the country set up a recognition procedure in 2017.

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