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No more stateless people in the world by 2024. That's the challenge the United Nations launched a few years ago. Several million people are now deprived of nationality. In India, Burma, but also in West Africa and even in Europe, after the dislocation of the former Yugoslavia. Since Geneva, UNHCR warns: the rise of nationalisms but also the anti-terrorism laws risk creating new stateless people.
From our correspondent in Geneva , Jérémie Lanche
For 5 years, more than 220,000 stateless persons have obtained a nationality. Kyrgyzstan has even become the first country to have officially formalized all cases of statelessness on its soil.
"To reduce statelessness, our role is to help people, we do not give them citizenship, we give them a right they should have had by birth."
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But the trend may well be reversed, according to the Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees, which notes the increase of an anti-migrant feeling. A feeling exacerbated by the terrorist risk, especially in Europe. From this point of view, the lapse of nationality practiced by some States may well be counterproductive.
Carol Batchelor is UNHCR's Special Adviser on Statelessness: " Of course, terrorist acts are very serious and they must be condemned. But removing the nationality of those who commit them does not erase the crimes. It does not solve the problem. And in some cases, the withdrawal of nationality has serious consequences for the children of these people. These children are innocent: they can not be held responsible for the actions of their parents . "
A few weeks ago, Switzerland for the first time withdrew nationality to a binational convicted of jihadist propaganda. One parliamentarian even tabled a motion to demand the revocation of nationality for similar acts, even if that person were to become stateless. The text has not yet been studied by the Swiss parliament.
Having a nationality is a basic human right.
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