Merlyn (left), seen here with her nephew CJ and cousin Adelaiza, harvests mushrooms for a living in Kidapawan City, the Philippines. She was born in the Philippines to Indonesian parents who made her promise to keep her Indonesian identity, a situation that eventually rendered her stateless. Merlyn does not have Filipino citizenship, yet she has no wish to return to Indonesia, where she has no family, no land and no understanding of the language. Merlyn’s husband and daughter are also stateless. 38 UNHCR Statistical Yearbook 2013 Stateless Persons EASURING STATE- of statelessness situations are both and an overview of the obstacles to LESSNESS IS COM- essential for States. Such informa- potential solutions. PLICATED, as stateless tion both allows States to adequately This chapter examines the com- persons often live in pre- respond to statelessness and enables plexity of identifying and enumerating carious situations on the UNHCR to fulfil its mandate to pre- stateless persons, and is divided into Mmargins of society. Frequently, stateless vent and reduce statelessness and pro- two sections. The first section provides persons are not only undocumented tect stateless individuals. Quantitative an overview of statistics available to but also ignored by the authorities and data and qualitative analysis are both UNHCR, including on some of the ac- uncounted in national administrative needed in order to provide a com- tivities undertaken by the agency to registries and databases. Only a minor- prehensive picture of a statelessness improve its data. The second section ity of countries have procedures in place situation. These processes should in- provides a critical analysis of the state for their identification, registration, and clude an assessment of the scale of the of statistics on stateless populations, au- documentation. Most stateless persons go situation in terms of magnitude and thored by the Institute on Statelessness uncounted even in population censuses. geographical spread, a profile of the and Inclusion. However, the identification of state- affected populations, analysis of the less persons and clear understanding causes and impacts of statelessness, º Persons under UNHCR’s statelessness mandate UNHCR’s Executive Committee has cal- In 2014, UNHCR launched the procedures that lead to a legal status led on the Office to undertake research Campaign to End Statelessness in 10 permitting residence and guaranteeing ‘to promote an increased understanding Years. This strategy is set out in the the enjoyment of basic human rights of the nature and scope of the problem agency’s Global Action Plan,37 which and facilitated naturalization. A second of statelessness’. It has also encouraged comprises 10 actions through which the action is the gathering of quantitative States that are in possession of statistics goals of the campaign will be achieved. and qualitative data on stateless popu- on stateless persons, or on individuals Successful implementation of the plan lations. Implementation of the Action UNHCR / R. ARNOLD with undetermined nationality, to share and achievement of the goals of the cam- 35 them with UNHCR. The Office has paign will both require improved base- 35 UNHCR (2006), Conclusion on Identification, Prevention issued updated guidance to its country line population data. Indeed, two of the and Reduction of Statelessness and Protection of Stateless Persons, 6 October 2006, No. 106 (LVII), available at: http:// offices on the reporting of statistics for plan’s formal actions directly deal with www.refworld.org/docid/453497302.html. populations under its statelessness man- the identification of stateless persons 36 UNHCR (2012), Guidelines on Statelessness No. 1: The definition of ‘Stateless Person’ in Article 1(1) of the 1954 date, reflecting efforts to clarify the defi- and the improvement of baseline data. Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons, 20 nition of a stateless person under Article One of these actions seeks to increase February 2012, HCR/GS/12/01, available at: http://www. 1 of the 1954 Convention relating to the the number of States that identify state- refworld.org/docid/4f4371b82.html. 37 http://www.unhcr.org/statelesscampaign2014/Global- Status of Stateless Persons.36 less migrants through determination Action-Plan-eng.pdf. UNHCR Statistical Yearbook 2013 39 Stateless Persons Plan also aims to strengthen civil reg- Fig. 3.1 Number of countries for which statistics on istration and vital statistics systems, stateless persons were reported | 2004 - 2013 which would likewise contribute to the availability of quantitative and qualita- tive data. 2004 30 11 Recent years have seen a signifi- cant increase in awareness of stateless- 2005 48 14 ness among governments and NGOs, 2006 49 19 and within the United Nations. Strong evidence of the greater commitments 2007 54 17 made by States to address stateless- 2008 58 22 ness is provided by the steady increase in the number of States that are party 2009 60 21 to the 1954 Convention relating to the 20 Status of Stateless Persons and the 2010 65 1961 Convention on the Reduction of 2011 64 21 Statelessness. Since 2011, 27 States have acceded to one or both of these conven- 2012 72 17 tions – in fact, more States have acceded 2013 75 19 to the 1961 Convention over the last four years than during the four decades fol- Countries with reliable data lowing its adoption. Currently, there are Countries with known populations without reliable data 83 States Parties to the 1954 Convention and 61 to the 1961 Convention. This growing commitment also lays the ground for improved identification and In the migratory context, stateless- residence and guaranteeing the enjoy- gathering of data on statelessness. ness determination procedures are es- ment of basic human rights and facili- Statistics on stateless persons can sential for the effective identification of tated naturalization. Other countries be gathered using several methods, stateless persons. The 1954 Convention are currently studying the possibility of including analysis of civil registration neither implicitly requires that a pro- establishing similar determination pro- data, a population census, or a targeted cedure be established nor prescribes cedures. Further, a number of countries survey. 38 The United Nations recom - a particular means for determining already have mechanisms in place to mendations on population censuses statelessness. It does establish stand- determine statelessness but would need underscore the importance of includ- ards of treatment of stateless persons, to bring these in line with international ing questions related to citizenship, however, and these can be applied by a standards on the protection of stateless including statelessness.39 Based on State Party only if it knows who should persons. In particular, these mecha- census data obtained through the 2010 receive this treatment. The creation of nisms would need to be linked to the World Population and Housing Census statelessness determination procedures granting of legal status permitting resi- Programme, data for 10 countries are therefore fulfills the objective and pur- dence, the enjoyment of basic human included in the 2013 statistics. This is pose of the 1954 Convention. Evidence rights, and facilitated naturalization. a significant increase, given that cen- shows that establishing statelessness UNHCR’s statistics on those under sus data for just two countries were in- determination procedures does not in- its statelessness mandate mainly com- cluded only three years ago. UNHCR crease migration by stateless persons to prise stateless persons – that is, persons will continue to work with other UN States with such procedures. To provide not considered as nationals by any State agencies and with civil society partners guidance to relevant actors, includ- under the operation of its law. However, to achieve further improvements in ing government authorities, UNHCR data from some countries also include census data quality and coverage in the published a Handbook on Protection of persons of undetermined nationality. coming years, including through the Stateless Persons40 in 2014. UNHCR’s statistics include data only on 2020 World Population and Housing Currently, 10 States have state- countries for which reliable official sta- Census Programme, for which prepara- lessness determination mechanisms tistics or estimates of stateless popula- tions are now underway. that lead to a legal status permitting tions are available. Despite the increased number of countries engaged in report- ing and the enhanced reliability of their figures, UNHCR is unable to provide 38 UNHCR (2012), The State of the World’s Refugees: In Search of Solidarity, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 108–109. comprehensive statistics on stateless 39 United Nations (2008), Principles and Recommendations for Population and Housing Censuses, Revision 2, New York, accessible at http://unstats.un.org/unsd/publication/seriesM/seriesm_67Rev2e.pdf. persons in all countries. A considerable 40 http://www.unhcr.org/53b698ab9.html. gap remains between the data provided 40 UNHCR Statistical Yearbook 2013 Stateless Persons in the statistics and the estimated global 30 countries in 2004, and reflected the many individuals of Haitian descent stateless population, which numbers at efforts of UNHCR’s offices to gather born in the country since 1929 are not least 10 million persons. Annex Table 7 better data on statelessness. For 2013, Dominican nationals. As they do