Statelessness – it’s one of those terms we hear a lot but what does it mean?
I went along to a workshop facilitated by Equal Rights Trust, Asylum Aid and Detention Action where we looked at the issue of statelessness and the lack of protection available for those affected by it.
For me, the workshop highlighted the problems faced by stateless persons – particularly the gap in protection that means they can be left destitute in the UK.
By definition a person who may be regarded as stateless “is not considered as a national by any State under the operation of its law” (Article 1 of the 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons). Essentially a stateless person has no citizenship or nationality.
Unfortunately this international designation is regrettably narrow. More problems arise for individuals who are de facto stateless – in that they have a legal nationality but it is ineffective because in practice their country denies them many or all rights.
Who are considered stateless?
Examples of groups that could be considered stateless include:
- Bidun people from Kuwait, who are nomads and often are denied Kuwaiti citizenship, which leads to being denied other things like employment, healthcare and education;
- Palestinians;
- The Rohingya, an ethnic minority from Burma – one of the largest and most persecuted stateless groups in the world. In 1982 they were stripped of their citizenship by the Burmese government and have been forced to flee the country by violent military campaigns and sustained persecution since at least the 1940s. Over one million Rohingya live in exile.
Furthermore, women are at greater risk of statelessness because institutions may require a husband or father’s presence.
Falling through the gaps – living in limbo
Refused asylum-seeking stateless people in the UK are left in limbo without any accommodation or financial support. Asylum Aid revealed it’s estimated that around 200 stateless people claim asylum each year and of those between 50 and 100 are refused asylum but remain ‘unreturnable’.
What does this mean for these people? They remain categorised as ‘refused asylum seekers’ here but cannot be returned or go voluntarily to their country of origin. Due to gaps in protection, these people can be left without any accommodation or financial support in this country.
Stateless, homeless and vulnerable
Of 37 interviewees, in research carried out by Asylum Aid, 28 had experienced destitution. A further three people were flown back to the UK after failed attempts to remove them to their country of origin. And refused asylum seekers, who cannot be returned, are being subject to long-term detention. Of 37 interviewees, a third had been detained – one for over five years!
At the workshop Detention Action also identified that work they’ve done shows £75 million could be saved if UKBA stopped detaining non-returnable (de facto stateless) people. They could also close half of the detention estate.
And while I now have a clear understanding of what statelessness means – I can’t comprehend why people seeking sanctuary and safety are being forced into destitution and a life in limbo.
