How Do Stateless People Live in Central Asia?

Statelessness is when a person has no nationality. It means no state considers them as its national. It can happen for a variety of reasons, including a gap in laws or administrative mistake. It is often passed from generation to generation. Currently, nearly 10 million people worldwide are stateless because they are not considered as nationals by any state under the operation of its law.

Statelessness has a strong impact on peoples’ lives. For example, stateless people can find it very difficult to get a job, get married, travel, see a doctor, open a bank account.

Statelessness can be caused by a number of factors such as: inappropriate nationality laws, which can discriminate against people because of their race, religion, or gender.

Moreover, lack of birth registration can put people at risk of statelessness as a birth certificate provides proof of where a person was born and parentage, which is key information needed to establish a nationality.

Also, people can become stateless because of the collapse of their state (as it happened during the collapse of the Soviet Union), change of borders, discriminatory laws (in some countries, men may have more rights than women). For example, when women have no right to transfer nationality to their children as fathers can. If parents are stateless, they can pass statelessness to their children.

The problem of statelessness is common for the whole region. All states have different figures, and different statelessness laws. It is partly because of it that there are still stateless persons.

The problem is related to the historical change of borders as all the states used to be a part of one Soviet Union. After the collapse, people who could previously move freely without passports were left without documents.

Migration flows across Central Asia also have their impact as people move in and out and may get stuck in other countries. Political and social changes have also had their impact. Every country has its unique challenges in this regard. For example, there are children in Kazakhstan who were born outside of hospitals and it can be difficult to register their birth. If one fails to get a birth certificate, the child can become stateless.

In Tajikistan, after the civil war, many people lost their documents, which complicated their confirmation of nationality. 

In Uzbekistan, to apply for nationality, one should first renounce one’s current nationality, which automatically makes a person stateless, and only then one can apply for nationality in Uzbekistan after having lived in the country for a certain period of time. This provision can increase the number of stateless persons. Instead, the countries could permit foreigners to apply for nationality and demand renunciation of their primary nationality within a year after obtaining the new one in order to reduce the risk of becoming stateless.

Being stateless, a person is deprived of basic rights enjoyed by citizens of the state such as: education, employment, social welfare, housing, healthcare as well as civil and political rights including: freedom of movement, freedom from arbitrary detention and political participation. When thousands of people are stateless, the result is communities that are marginalised. In turn, it can lead to conflicts.

The main obstacles to getting nationality by stateless persons include not only the lack of necessary documents such as birth certificate or passport, but also other barriers. Some states require that applicants know history and language, which can become a serious obstacle for many. Moreover, high state fees and difficult bureaucratic procedures can become an obstacle to acquiring a nationality.

In some cases, the state’s laws may not provide for clear mechanisms for naturalisation or leave room for discriminatory practices, which also restricts access to nationality. Sometimes, even if a stateless person complies with all the requirements, the process of acquiring nationality can take years due to slow work of state bodies.

First, it requires political will. If there is political will, the problem can be solved quickly. It is important that governments want to do that. They can amend the laws so that no one is left stateless.

For example, they can do it so that all children automatically become nationals of the country where they were born. Therefore, administrative procedures for birth registration should be improved. If every child gets a birth certificate, he/she will have proof of parentage and where he/she was born. It will reduce the risk of becoming stateless.

It is also important to follow the principles of the 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons, which lies at the heart of the international regime for protection of stateless persons, and the principles of the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness. It sets forth certain obligations to prevent and reduce statelessness.

People also should be told about how important it is to register child birth and how to become a national. If states work together and listen to each other’s advices, the problem of statelessness could be solved.

If you become stateless, it is important to know that there are organisations that can help you. Here are a few steps you can take:

• Go to a local office of UNHCR (the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) or any other organisation that helps stateless persons. They will provide you with information and support;
• Know your rights. You can get legal advice;
• Gather all available documents. These can be documents establishing your identity, place of birth, information about relatives;
• Share your story. Tell about your situation to the officers of organisations that can help you;
• Learn about opportunities for obtaining nationality or legal status in the country of your stay.

Remember that you are not alone and there are specialists and organisation there ready to help you.