Forever delayed – statelessness “under consideration” in Lebanon

In this blog I consider the causes of statelessness in Lebanon.  The situation in Lebanon is complex, for historic reasons, due to discriminatory nationality laws, administrative challenges and its large long-term refugee population, primarily from Syria and Palestine.  There is enough material to fill a whole book, never mind just the one post.

In this blog I focus on statelessness caused by gender discriminatory provisions in Lebanon’s nationality laws and the statelessness caused by the lack of universal birth registration of children.  I focus on these two causes of statelessness for two reason.  First, because they give a flavour of the complex causes of statelessness.  Second, because those issues can be fixed. By changes in the law, by better administrative arrangements, and ultimately, by political will.

 

Causes of statelessness in Lebanon

The exact number of stateless people in Lebanon is unknown ¹.  What we do have is information about the causes of statelessness in Lebanon.

According to UNHCR there are three main causes of statelessness in Lebanon ².  Historical statelessness stemming from the many that were excluded from the 1932 census.  Legislative statelessness is another cause. UNHCR describes this as “gaps in the legal framework which deny nationality to some”, but that is too diplomatic an explanation.  The reality is that gender discrimination in nationality laws is a great contributor to statelessness in Lebanon.  Statelessness can also be caused by administrative measures or where an individual is unable to provide proof of the right to citizenship.  Such administrative measures, I would argue, include barriers to an effective and universal birth registration.

To those three we can also add the challenges that come with Lebanon hosting different groups of long-term refugee communities within its borders.  For example, currently there are an estimated 1.5 million Syrian refugees in Lebanon.  The treatment of stateless refugees in Lebanon is, however, not discussed here, since it is an issue worthy of its own blog post.

 

Discriminatory nationality laws in Lebanon

Women in Lebanon cannot acquire, transmit or retain nationality on an equal basis as men ³.  Lebanon is one of 25 countries which deny women the right to pass nationality to their children on an equal basis with men ⁴.  Progress is being made around the world to remove these discriminatory provisions ⁵.  Lebanon, too, can take action.

The 1925 Nationality Law, dates from the time when Lebanon was a French mandate ⁶.  The law is outdated and is in desperate need of revision ⁷.

The provisions under the 1925 Nationality Law affects the ability of children to acquire Lebanese nationality where the nationality can only be passed via their mother and places them at risk of statelessness.  Under Article 1.1 of the Lebanese Nationality Law “every person born to a Lebanese father” is considered to be Lebanese.  This continues to be the case despite calls from the Secretariat of the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) to amend the law to permit the transition of citizenship to children by either a Lebanese father or a Lebanese mother.  CEDAW also calls for Lebanon to withdraw its reservation to Article 9 of the Convention.  Article 9 prohibits gender discrimination in the acquisition, conferral, transfer or retention of nationality.

A change in the law to remove these discriminatory provisions would have a huge impact on the number of (needlessly) stateless individuals in Lebanon.  According to an NGO study carried out in 2012 and 2013, 73 percent of the stateless people in Lebanon who are not of Palestinian origin were born to a Lebanese mother ⁸.

 

What chance of changing Lebanon’s nationality laws?

It appears that, slowly, the argument that men and women should have equal access to citizenship is gaining ground.  For example, recently, the Lebanese government recognised that Article 5 of the Lebanese National Law should be applied.  Article 5 allows foreign women with a Lebanese husband to apply for citizenship a year from the registration of her marriage.  This can be done without the signature of the Lebanese husband ⁹.

This does not solve all problems.  Foreign women not married to a Lebanese man cannot apply in their own right for Lebanese citizenship.  Nor do Lebanese women have the right to pass on their nationality on to their children if the father is foreign or of nationality unknown.  Despite several promises to amend the citizenship law to give equal right to women ¹⁰, this has not yet occurred.

 

Birth registration adds to the number of stateless in Lebanon

Birth registration has increased, but still disproportionately leaves out the marginalised and the most vulnerable.  Just as Syria has its own maktoum (among the unregistered Kurdish minority population, on which, see my blog) so Lebanon has approximately 40,000 unregistered and unrecognised individuals ¹¹.   With some exceptions ¹², Lebanon follows the jus sangunis principle of nationality acquisition, which means that for a child to claim citizenship it must evidence the nationality of its parent or parents.  This is not easy if the parents are unregistered or unrecognised as Lebanese citizens.

Lebanon is a signatory to the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Article 7 which states that a child

“shall be registered immediately after birth and shall have the right from birth to a name, the right to acquire a nationality and, as far as possible, the right to know and be cared for by his or her parents … in particular where the child would otherwise be stateless”. 

Article 8 calls for States Parties to “undertake to respect the right of the child to preserve his or her identity, including nationality, name and family relations”.

Unlike its reservation with respect to the provisions in CEDAW which prohibits gender discrimination in the acquisition, conferral, transfer or retention of nationality, Lebanon has not derogated from the provisions relating to children and their registration and legal identity.  Even when administrative challenges are taken into account, Lebanon can do more to ensure free and universal birth registration.

 

Impact of statelessness

What is clear, although not too often discussed, is the impact that statelessness has on those living in Lebanon.  I have written before on all the basic rights that are denied to stateless individuals, and stateless individuals in Lebanon are no exception.  Stateless children cannot go to school, adults do not have the right to work and neither adults nor children can access social benefits or healthcare ¹³.

Many Individuals in Lebanon are ‘under consideration’ (or ‘under study’ or ‘under review’).  Their number include many who might be entitled to Lebanese nationality, but their family were not included on the last official census, carried out in 1932, children who are born outside of a legally recognise marriage, or children who were unregistered at birth.  Such individuals often stay ‘under consideration’ for decades and their numbers increase with every generation ¹⁴.

 

Much reform still needed

There is evidence that individual government agencies and ministries have made a number of decisions with an incremental effect of giving access to education and work to non-citizens and stateless people.  Clearly, there is some political will to improve the precarious situation of Lebanon’s stateless population.

Much more reform is still needed, however.  First, to remove discriminatory provisions in Lebanon’s Nationality Laws. Second, to ensure that statelessness is recognised, stateless people are given protection and access to basic rights and the hardships of statelessness are adequately mitigated.