The right to a nationality requires not only that a person can acquire nationality at birth, but also that arbitrary deprivation of nationality is prohibited. The 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness establishes restrictions on states’ rights to deprive a person of nationality, while the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights creates requirements on due process that the African Commission has confirmed apply in the area of nationality rights. Since 2008, the UN Human Rights Council has adopted a series of reports and resolutions on the arbitrary deprivation of nationality, and UNHCR has also published guidance on loss and deprivation of nationality.
The 1961 Convention distinguishes between loss of nationality (that is automatic, by operation of law; for example, commonly provided for if a person acquires another nationality) and deprivation (that involves a decision by the executive; for example, if a person has committed a serious crime against the state). The laws of many African states provide for extremely broad grounds for deprivation of nationality, and some even exclude deprivation of nationality from review by the courts. In practice, African states wishing to deny a person nationality have often asserted that a person was erroneously recognised as a national to start off with: however, it is clear that such an assertion is also subject to the rules forbidding arbitrary deprivation of nationality.
By Julia Schweers Introduction Ghana’s citizenship laws were first defined with independence from British colonial rule in 1957. Its early citizenship laws established the so-called ‘Lancaster House’ model, which other African states later also used to determine membership at independence, […]
Issued by Adrian Roos MP – DA Spokesperson on Home Affairs The Democratic Alliance (DA) welcomes the decisive step taken by Home Affairs Minister Dr. Leon Schreiber to address the inconsistencies surrounding the 2015 granting of South African citizenship to […]
ATM leader Vuyo Zungula says Cape Independence leader Phil Craig is sowing divisions in SA and his citizenship should be revoked. By Nokwanda Ncwane African Transformation Movement (ATM) leader Vuyo Zungula has called on Home Affairs minister Leon Schreiber to […]
Au Niger, le président Abdourahmane Tiani a signé hier mardi 27 août 2024 l’ordonnance instituant un fichier sur lequel seront inscrits les noms de personnes, groupes ou entités impliqués dans des actes terroristes ou dans toutes autres infractions portant atteinte […]
from ALLOYCE KIMBUNGA DAR-ES-SALAAM, (CAJ News) – TANZANIA stands accused of stripping some indigenous Maasai citizens of their right to vote ahead of the local elections in November. Avaaz, a global campaign network and non-profit organisation, has alleged that some […]
By Victoria O’Regan Debates about Sowetan-born, former Miss South Africa contestant Chidimma Adetshina’s nationality have prompted questions about South African citizenship. What does it mean to be South African in terms of the law? Citizenship, in the legal sense, means […]
By Zuwena Shame THE Legal and Human Rights Centre (LHRC) has urged the law reform institutions to repeal Section 37 of the Constitution Act, which relates to amending citizenship law and its procedures. Dr Anna Henga, the LHRC executive director, […]
The Sudanese Congress Party on Tuesday accused the government authorities in Port Sudan of continuing to target its members by banning and confiscating their national identity card numbers. In a statement obtained by Radio Tamazuj, the party said that the […]
by Zelda Venter A Man who was more than three years ago suddenly stripped of his South African citizenship by Home Affairs, and who had in the meantime lost his job as a result, turned to the court for a […]
A primeira alteração à Lei n.º 33/X/2023, de 22 de agosto, que define as condições de atribuição, aquisição, perda e reaquisição da nacionalidade cabo-verdiana. Download: Cabo Verde Lei_37_X_2024 alteração da Lei da Nacionalidade
By Bronwen Manby On 17 February 2024, the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union (AU) formally adopted a Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Specific Aspects of the Right […]
The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (the African Commission), welcomes with great satisfaction the adoption of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights relating to the Specific Aspects of the Right to a Nationality […]