Issue ID Cards to Stateless Kenyans
Published: 19/Aug/2015
Source: The Star (Nairobi)
opinion By Duke Mwancha
Recent news on issues of citizenship, statelessness and marginalisation have featured Nubian, Makonde, Shona, Somali and Arab communities in Kenya. These are groups with historical or ethnic ties to other countries who have either been rendered stateless or are in danger of becoming stateless.
International treaties proclaim citizenship as a basic right, though we have 10 million stateless people globally. The fact that they are not recognised by any state as citizens exposes them to many challenges, ranging from denial of basic rights to access to employment, housing, education, and healthcare.
It is possible they are also not able to own property, open bank accounts, get married legally or register their children after birth. Some could even face detention because they cannot prove who they are.
The exact number of stateless people in Kenya is not known and was not recorded in the last census. It is estimated that there are 100,000 of them from Sudan, Rwanda, Burundi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Somalia and Asia.
Read further on AllAfrica website.