Stateless | Open Society Institute http://www.soros.org/indepth/stateless A stateless person is not recognized as a citizen by any state. This is important because citizenship is the essential foundation of a person’s legal identity. It is your right to have rights. Citizenship is necessary not only to vote, hold public office, and exit and enter a country freely, but also to obtain housing, health care, employment, and education. Citizenship is necessary in order to live a decent human life. Stateless people are denied that right. IHRDA v. Mauritania http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/litigation/ihrda This case is about statelessness and discrimination against non-Arab citizens in Mauritania. Fri, 12 Feb 2010 09:37:55 EST http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/litigation/ihrda Bueno v. Dominican Republic http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/litigation/bueno This case is about statelessness in the Dominican Republic. It focuses on a Dominican man who was denied identity documents because he was of Haitian descent. Fri, 18 Dec 2009 10:09:30 EST http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/litigation/bueno Nubian Minors v. Kenya http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/litigation/minors This case is before the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child. The Open Society Justice Initiative has filed a complaint stating that Kenya violates the rights of Nubian children by failing to provide access to education and other social services. Thu, 19 Nov 2009 13:24:32 EST http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/litigation/minors Ali v. Kenya http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/litigation/ali This case is about Nubians in Kenya. A minority community, they are denied citizenship rights because of their ethnicity. Wed, 27 Jan 2010 09:05:04 EST http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/litigation/ali What Is Statelessness? http://www.soros.org/indepth/stateless/what_is_statelessness.html Citizenship is necessary in order to live a decent human life. Stateless people are denied that right. Fri, 25 Sep 2009 13:40:22 EST http://www.soros.org/indepth/stateless/what_is_statelessness.html What You Can Do About Statelessness http://www.soros.org/indepth/stateless/what_you_can_do.html The world has a long way to go before the right to citizenship assured. There are several things we can do in order to help make this right a reality. Fri, 25 Sep 2009 14:04:13 EST http://www.soros.org/indepth/stateless/what_you_can_do.html Who Is Affected? http://www.soros.org/indepth/stateless/who_it_affects.html Statelessness affects 15 million people around the world, from the Kenyan Nubians in Africa to the Thailand Hill Tribes in Asia to Dominicans of Haitian-descent in the Caribbean. Fri, 25 Sep 2009 13:47:41 EST http://www.soros.org/indepth/stateless/who_it_affects.html Where Does Statelessness Happen? http://www.soros.org/indepth/stateless/where_it_happens.html Statelessness occurs worldwide, including in Bangladesh, Pakistan, Burma, Cote D'Ivoire, Dominican Republic, Europe, Estonia, Latvia, Kenya, Mauritania, Sri Lanka, Slovenia, Thailand, and Zimbabwe. Fri, 25 Sep 2009 13:58:23 EST http://www.soros.org/indepth/stateless/where_it_happens.html Greg Constantine http://www.soros.org/initiatives/photography/focus_areas/distribution/grantees/constantine_2009 Greg Constantine will partner with UNHCR to create a traveling exhibition, permanent digital archive, multimedia video, and pdf photo essay that combine photographs documenting the consequences of statelessness and the denial of citizenship on Nubians in Kenya, with rare historical photographs and documents from their personal collections. Fri, 16 Oct 2009 12:18:17 EST http://www.soros.org/initiatives/photography/focus_areas/distribution/grantees/constantine_2009 Related Information http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/news/citizenship_20091021/llo_news_related_1 Wed, 21 Oct 2009 12:57:19 EST http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/news/citizenship_20091021/llo_news_related_1 Related Information http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/articles_publications/publications/citizenship_20091009/llo_publication_related_1 Fri, 09 Oct 2009 16:34:52 EST http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/articles_publications/publications/citizenship_20091009/llo_publication_related_1 Related Information http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/articles_publications/publications/struggles_20091009/llo_publication_related_1 Fri, 09 Oct 2009 16:57:21 EST http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/articles_publications/publications/struggles_20091009/llo_publication_related_1 Makuc v. Slovenia http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/litigation/makuc This case is about citizenship rights and statelessness in Slovenia. Fri, 12 Feb 2010 09:16:50 EST http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/litigation/makuc People v. Côte d'Ivoire http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/litigation/people This case is about citizenship discrimination against minorities in Côte d'Ivoire. Fri, 12 Feb 2010 09:46:57 EST http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/litigation/people Citizenship and Statelessness in Africa http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/projects/africacitizenship The Open Society Justice Initiative challenges statelessness and discrimination in access to citizenship in Africa, using research, litigation, and advocacy to help people claim their rights. Tue, 09 Feb 2010 07:49:38 EST http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/projects/africacitizenship Legal Approaches to Combating Statelessness http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/articles_publications/articles/stateless_20041006 James Goldston, executive director of the Open Society Justice Initiative, addressed a UNHCR Executive Committee panel in Geneva to mark the 50th Anniversary of the 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons. Wed, 06 Oct 2004 18:11:13 EST http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/articles_publications/articles/stateless_20041006 Open Society Justice Initiative Makes Statement to the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/news/africa_20050502 The Open Society Justice Initiative, together with partners in a number of African countries, is undertaking a survey of the state of the law. Mon, 02 May 2005 16:18:58 EST http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/news/africa_20050502 Inter-American Court of Human Rights Affirms the Human Right to Nationality and Upholds the International Prohibition on Racial Discrimination in Access to Nationality http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/news/citizenship_20051017 The Inter-American Court of Human Rights issued a landmark decision affirming the human right to nationality as the gateway to the equal enjoyment of all rights as civic members of a state, according to the Open Society Justice Initiative. Mon, 17 Oct 2005 10:30:06 EST http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/news/citizenship_20051017 Citizenship and Equality in Practice: Comments on the Right to Nationality Submitted to the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/articles_publications/publications/citizenship_20051101 The Open Society Justice Initiative today urged the international community to develop a comprehensive strategy to resolve statelessness. Tue, 01 Nov 2005 16:56:06 EST http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/articles_publications/publications/citizenship_20051101 Expelled Mauritanians Appeal for their Right to Return http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/news/mauritania_20051104 The Dodel Appeal marks an important new stage in the struggle to restore citizenship and obtain compensation for the thousands of Mauritanian refugees, reports the Open Society Justice Initiative. Fri, 04 Nov 2005 10:43:09 EST http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/news/mauritania_20051104 Dominican Bias http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/articles_publications/articles/dominicanrepublic_20070929 In a letter to the editor, Julia Harrington and Indira Goris, express dismay at the Dominican Republics continued denial of citizenship to Dominicans of Haitian descent. Sat, 29 Sep 2007 15:08:43 EST http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/articles_publications/articles/dominicanrepublic_20070929 Open Society Justice Initiative Seeks Relief for Slovenia's "Erased" Citizens http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/news/slovenia_20071016 In a brief submitted to the European Court of Human Rights, the Open Society Justice Initiative argued that the Slovene government's erasure of thousands of its citizens violated the European Convention of Human Rights. Tue, 16 Oct 2007 11:35:34 EST http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/news/slovenia_20071016 Kenyan Nubians: Without Papers, Who Are You? http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/articles_publications/articles/nubians_20071219 The Open Society Justice Initiative is working to help the stateless of Kenya organize, campaign for access to citizenship, and fight for the right to a simple identity card. Wed, 19 Dec 2007 10:21:57 EST http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/articles_publications/articles/nubians_20071219 Statelessness: What It Is and Why It Matters http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/articles_publications/articles/stateless_20090401 Indira Goris, Julia Harrington, and Sebastian Köhn of the Open Society Justice Initiative explain why people without citizenship are some of the most vulnerable in the world, in this article from Forced Migration Review. Wed, 01 Apr 2009 11:24:37 EST http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/articles_publications/articles/stateless_20090401 Citizenship Law in Africa http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/articles_publications/publications/citizenship_20091009 Statelessness and discriminatory citizenship practices underlie and exacerbate tensions in many regions of Africa, according to this report released by the Open Society Justice Initiative and the Africa Governance Monitoring and Advocacy Project. Fri, 09 Oct 2009 16:34:52 EST http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/articles_publications/publications/citizenship_20091009 Struggles for Citizenship in Africa http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/articles_publications/publications/struggles_20091009 Written by Bronwen Manby of the Open Society Institute, this book documents the dire consequences of pervasive citizenship discrimination across the continent. Fri, 09 Oct 2009 16:57:21 EST http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/articles_publications/publications/struggles_20091009 Dominicans http://www.soros.org/indepth/stateless/who_it_affects/dominicans.html For Dominicans of Haitian descent, obtaining proof of citizenship-required for everything from education to employment to voting-has become a legal and bureaucratic impossibility. Wed, 14 Oct 2009 17:42:00 EST http://www.soros.org/indepth/stateless/who_it_affects/dominicans.html Roma http://www.soros.org/indepth/stateless/who_it_affects/roma.html Without official identification documents or legal claims to their property, Roma families in the Balkans encounter enormous obstacles. Their problems have only been exacerbated by the decades of conflict that have plagued the region. Wed, 14 Oct 2009 17:42:00 EST http://www.soros.org/indepth/stateless/who_it_affects/roma.html The Rohingya http://www.soros.org/indepth/stateless/who_it_affects/rohingya.html Nearly a quarter of a million Rohingya have fled into neighboring Bangladesh in hopes of escaping their persecution in Burma. The government of Bangladesh declared the Rohingya illegal immigrants and placed them in refugee camps. Wed, 14 Oct 2009 17:42:00 EST http://www.soros.org/indepth/stateless/who_it_affects/rohingya.html What Does It Mean to Be Stateless? http://www.soros.org/indepth/stateless/index_html Globally 15 million people are denied citizenship. The Open Society Institute presents a few of their stories-and ways that you can help. Wed, 14 Oct 2009 17:35:32 EST http://www.soros.org/indepth/stateless/index_html Mauritanians http://www.soros.org/indepth/stateless/who_it_affects/mauritanians.html In 1989, Mauritania's Arab-dominated government revoked the citizenship of an estimated 75,000 black Africans. Many have been stranded in refugee camps ever since. Wed, 14 Oct 2009 17:42:00 EST http://www.soros.org/indepth/stateless/who_it_affects/mauritanians.html Lack of Citizenship Rights a Major Cause of Conflict in Africa http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/news/citizenship_20091021 The lack of citizenship rights generates conflict and undermines democracy in many countries in Africa, according to two new studies by the Open Society Institute. Wed, 21 Oct 2009 12:57:19 EST http://www.soros.org/initiatives/justice/focus/equality_citizenship/news/citizenship_20091021