Identity, Citizenship, and the Registrar General: The Politicking of Identity in Zimbabwe

Published: 22/Jul/2012
Source: Research and Advocacy Unit, Harare

By Rumbidzai Dube, Senior Researcher, RAU

This report addresses a fundamental issue that most people are aware of, but rarely give much attention to until they are personally affected; acquiring identity documents and citizenship. It is common knowledge that there are many challenges that Zimbabwean citizens face in accessing identity documents. It is also widely known that the prominence of the ‘alien’ status in 2002 through the amendment of the Citizenship of Zimbabwe Act (Chapter 4.1) has seen some people losing their Zimbabwean citizenship; forced to identify themselves as other nationalities to which their descendants belonged such as Malawian or Mozambican.

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Themes: Acquisition of nationality, Acquisition by children, Dual Nationality, Identity Documents, Birth Registration, ID Documents and Passports, Loss and Deprivation of Nationality
Regions: Zimbabwe
Year: 2012