Page 15 of 46 Freedom of Association Although the constitution and law provided for freedom of association, courts continued to place legal restrictions on associations of self-identified ethnic Macedonians or associations that included the term “Turkish” as indicative of a collective ethnic identity. The Thrace-based “Turkish Union of Xanthi” continued to operate without legal status, based on a 2021 Supreme Court ruling denying its official registration on “national security and public order grounds.” c. Freedom of Religion See the Department of State’s International Religious Freedom Report at https://www.state.gov/religiousfreedomreport/. d. Freedom of Movement and the Right to Leave the Country The law provided for freedom of internal movement, foreign travel, emigration, and repatriation, and the government generally respected these rights. e. Protection of Refugees The government cooperated with the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and other humanitarian organizations in providing Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2023 United States Department of State • Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor