UNHCR says Ireland should recognize stateless people!
The Government of Ireland has been called upon to recognize stateless people.
RTE reports that the government was advised to do so by the UNHCR which said there are millions of people who can not lay claim to any nationality.
Some are born stateless and others become stateless due to many reasons including discrimination or deprivation of nationality by state authorities, gaps in nationality laws, conflicts between states or the emergence of new states and changes in borders.
Stateless people usually find it challenging to access fundamental rights such as individual documentation, education, healthcare, employment and freedom of interest.
The number of stateless people in Ireland is assumed to be small. But the exact number is unknown since there is no “systematic recording” of their data in the country.
In a report – Mapping Statelessness in Ireland – which was published today, it was recommended that Ireland should take steps to establish and implement a statelessness determination procedure in order to prioritize their identification and protection. It also said the establishment of such a procedure would ensure fairness, transparency and efficiency in how they are dealt with.
Ireland’s Department of Justice has welcomed the Mapping Statelessness in Ireland report. It said it is considering how best to address the points raised in the report.
