The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has recently ruled that North Macedonia violated Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights by refusing access to sensitive adoption records based on national legislation. The Strasbourg-based court found that the North Macedonian authorities did not consider the conflicting interests involved and ordered compensation for the non-pecuniary damages and costs incurred by the applicant.
The case, Mitrevska v North Macedonia, emanates from a North Macedonian national who was adopted as a child. In 2017, she requested information about her biological family from Skopje social services and the Adoption Commission of the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy, highlighting the significance of her adoption records in relation to her medical health history, as she was diagnosed with depressive anxiety disorder and had speech issues. However, her efforts were stonewalled, with authorities citing section 123-a of the Family Act that classifies completed adoptions as official secrets and treats all adoption-related information as confidential.
After exhausting all domestic legal remedies, the applicant brought her case before the ECHR arguing the violation of Article 8 which protects the right to private and family life. In their decision, the court stressed the sensitive and ethical dimensions of an adoptee’s right to information about their biological origins, needing a balance between personal privacy and public interest. They deemed that North Macedonian authorities had not appropriately balanced those interests and, ruling in her favour, indicated that both the Skopje social services and the Adoption Commission breached Article 8 of the convention.
In conclusion, based on Article 41 of the convention, the applicant is to be compensated with €4,500 ($ 4,872) for non-pecuniary damages, and reimbursement of €1,440 ($ 1559) for expenses and costs associated with the legal proceedings.
For further details, you can read the full article on Jurist.