“Everyone has the right to a nationality”

Blog

The blog entries represent the views of the authors but not those of the Network, unless otherwise noted.

  • Taking stock of State pledges to tackle statelessness?

    19 September 2012 | Chris Nash, International Protection Policy Coordinator at Asylum Aid

    It is now just three months short of a year since UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres, hailed a “quantum leap” in global efforts to tackle statelessness at a Ministerial Meeting organised by UNHCR in Geneva to mark the 50th Anniversary of the 1961 Statelessness Convention. At this meeting 61 countries made statelessness-related pledges and 33 states committed to accede or take steps to accede to either or both conventions.

  • Statelessness in Sweden - changes ahead?

    12 September 2012 | Sebastian Kohn

    Sweden was one out of only four countries that pledged during the 2011 UNHCR Ministerial Meeting to address statelessness through foreign policy (the other three were South Africa, the US and Hungary).

  • Refworld: A key resource on all things statelessness

    27 August 2012 | This explanatory text about Refworld is courtesy of UNHCR's Statelessness Unit, Geneva

    Refworld, a leading online resource containing valuable legal, policy and academic information relating to asylum seekers, refugees and internally displaced persons compiled by UNHCR, also holds a wide range of resources relating to statelessness. These resources can be found on the regularly updated Statelessness Special Features Page, available at: 
    http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/statelessness.html

  • Giving a Face to the Invisible

    20 August 2012 | Jelena Petrovic, Programme Assistant, Praxis

    The true personal testimonies of the Roma unregistered at birth translated into the documentary Here I Am found their way this summer to the hearts of many.

  • Progress can be made

    13 August 2012 | Davor Rako, Associate Protection Officer, UNHCR Belgrade

    Through its field activities and the activities of its legal implementing partner Praxis, UNHCR in Serbia has identified that the problem of statelessness, or being at risk of statelessness, disproportionately affects the Roma population in Serbia.

  • Access to protection: promising newcomers?

    3 August 2012 | Gabor Gyulai

    “We might give you protection, but you might not be allowed to stay here until we decide”. Sounds absurd, right? Yet the right to remain on the territory while one’s claim for protection as stateless person is being processed is far from being embedded in existing national protection schemes.

     

  • A Global Campaign to End Statelessness - The Time Has Come

    25 July 2012 | Mark Manly (Head UNHCR Statelessness Unit) and Radha Govil (UNHCR)

    For too long statelessness has remained a sleeper issue. This is surprising considering that UNHCR's latest statistics confirm 3.5 million stateless persons worldwide and estimate that the number is closer to 12 million. Furthermore, the problem has persisted all around the globe.  

  • Stateless in the Netherlands: Stuck in paradise?

    23 July 2012 | Karel Hendriks, Statelessness research consultant

    The Netherlands is a splendid country in many ways. Despite amusing political bickering, it’s a stable democracy. Despite the occasional judicial mishap, there’s a strong and independent legal system. Despite austerity and budget cuts, poverty is scarce and social security broad. And, contrary to popular belief, most trains run on time. In short, for most Dutch people life is a breeze – relatively speaking of course. However, entry to this paradise is notably restricted. In this case, citizenship is the key to get in.

  • A growing voice - Network building in Brussels and at UNHCR's NGO Consultations in Geneva

    13 July 2012 | Chris Nash, International Protection Policy Coordinator at Asylum Aid

    Following the launch of our website we have been working hard to spread the word about the European Network on Statelessness (ENS), including through holding briefing events for civil society actors in Brussels and in Geneva. Both events were well attended, and resulted in several organisations applying to join the Network.

  • The UN Human Rights Council

    The UN adopts a new resolution on the right to nationality

    6 July 2012 | Katrine Thomasen & Sebastian Kohn

    Yesterday the UN’s Human Rights Council—a body responsible for promoting and protecting human rights around the world—passed an important resolution on the right to nationality, focusing specifically on women and children. This is an important step to further strengthen international legal norms in this area. It is also a strong indication of increasing understanding and concern for those who have no nationality anywhere—the stateless—and those who experience severe discrimination when they attempt to obtain proof of their nationality. 

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