Bulgaria: The Maksuda, including whether it is a "mahala" in Varna, its location, ethnic composition and surrounding area; whether a particular address is located in Maksuda
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 26 August 2004 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | BGR42938.E |
| Reference | 1 |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Bulgaria: The Maksuda, including whether it is a "mahala" in Varna, its location, ethnic composition and surrounding area; whether a particular address is located in Maksuda, 26 August 2004, BGR42938.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/42df60acb.html [accessed 6 June 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
Information on the Maksuda was scarce among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.
According to a December 2003 report prepared by the Geneva-based Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions (COHRE) in collaboration with the Budapest-based European Roma Rights Center (ERRC), the Maksuda is a Roma neighbourhood that is situated in the northern part of Varna, along the coast of the Black Sea (2 Dec. 2003). The neighbourhood is an informal settlement, also known as a mahala (COHRE/ERRC 2 Dec. 2003). The report adds that as at September 2003,
...a mere twenty houses in the neighbourhood had running water.... The entire neighbourhood lacked a sewage-removal system, and inhabitants were forced to dig self-built outdoor toilets. Very few of the Romani residents of this neighbourhood had legal security of tenure and [as] at... September 2003[,] a legal case for the repossession of land...filed by pre-Communist Era landowners [was pending]. Thousands of Roma are therefore faced with the threat of homelessness (ibid.).
Additional information on the Maksuda could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.
Information on whether a particular address was located in the Maksuda could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.
Reference
Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions (COHRE)/ European Roma Rights Center (ERRC). 2 December 2003. "Comments of the European Roma Rights Center (ERRC) and Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions (COHRE) on the Occasion of the Article 16 Review of Bulgaria, Italy and Romania Under the Revised European Cosical Charter Supervision Cycle 2004."
Additional Sources Consulted
Internet sites, including: Amnesty International (AI), BBC, Dialog/WNC, European Country of Origin Information Network (ECOI), Foundation for Regional Development ROMA, Freedom House, Human Rights Watch (HRW), Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN), International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Religious Tolerance.org, U.S. Committee for Refugees (USCR).
