UNHCR PRAISES LIBERIAN GOVERNMENT FOR REMOVING GENDER DISCRIMINATION FROM NATIONALITY LAW

Date:

LIBERIA – The U.N. refugee agency, UNHCR, has praised Liberia for removing gender discrimination from its nationality law, granting women the same right as men to pass their nationality to their children.

With the stroke of a pen, Liberian President George Weah amended the country’s Aliens and Nationality Law on August 5, removing the primary cause of statelessness among children.

The U.N. refugee agency calls the act hugely significant. It says the amended law gives women the same rights as men to confer their nationality on their children. Heretofore, children were unable to access the rights of citizenship if the father was absent or unknown.

Under the new act, children will be able to benefit from their mother’s citizenship even if there is no man in the picture, UNHCR spokeswoman Shabia Mantoo told VOA.

That, she said, will spare many children from becoming stateless and deprived of multiple rights.

“This has major implications from the cradle to the grave,” she said. “It really can exclude people from the rights and assistance and services that other citizens may have by limiting their access to education, health care, documentation, and also exposing them to risks of lifelong discrimination and exclusion, as well as violence, abuse, and trafficking.”

In 2014, the UNHCR estimated there were at least 10 million stateless people in the world when it began its #IBelong Campaign to end statelessness by 2024. Data from 94 countries collected in 2019 put that number at around 4.2 million, a figure the UNHCR considers to be grossly underestimated.

Mantoo said24 countries in the world today continue to have gender discriminatory provisions in their nationality laws.

“Liberia is the latest country to reform the law and end the gender discriminatory provision,” said Mantoo. “We know that statelessness is a global phenomenon. We know in West Africa there are apparently at least 1.6 million stateless people or people of undetermined nationality. And that is according to government figures. But it is a pervasive issue. So, this is a really momentous milestone in this campaign, in the effort to prevent and resolve statelessness.”

Madagascar reformed its nationality laws guaranteeing the equal right of citizens regardless of their gender on January 25, 2017. Six months later, on July 5, Sierra Leone became the second African country to legislate gender discriminatory reforms.

smartnews
Smart News Liberia is an online news outlet, a product of Smart Media Group Inc. smartnewsliberia.com publishes a wide range of content including politics, business, sports, and entertainment on and about Liberia. Contact: +231777425285/ 886946925 Email: info@smartnewsliberia.com/ smartnewsliberia@gmail.com

MORE NEWS

PUL EX-LEADERS PUSH FOR TRAVEL BAN TO BE IMPOSED ON OFFICIALS OF WEAH’S GOV’T

Two ex-leaders of the journalists’ umbrella organization, Press Union...

US TREASURY SANCTIONS PEOPLE IN 9 COUNTRIES FOR HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES

The U.S. Treasury's ’s Office of Foreign Assets Control...

LIBERIA: CSO COUNCIL DEMANDS IMPARTIAL INVESTIGATION INTO DEATH OF JOSHUA SOLOMON

MONROVIA – The National Civil Society Council of Liberia...

LIBERIA: GGAA SADDENS OVER THE DEATH OF REP. EROL MADISON GWION

The Grand Gedeh Association in the Americas (GGAA) is...

PRESIDENT WEAH DISMISSES TWO COMMERCE MINISTRY OFFICIALS

MONROVIA – President George Manneh Weah has with immediate...

ECOWAS COURT DELIVERS JUDGEMENT ON VIOLATION OF LIBERIAN PARTY’S RIGHTS

By Maina Maina The ECOWAS Court of Justice has delivered a...

ALJA COMMENDS LIBERIANS ON THE SUCCESSFUL AND PEACEFUL CONCLUSION OF PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION

The Association of Liberian Journalists in the Americas (ALJA)...

FORMER NIC CHAIRMAN PAYGAI CONGRATULATES BOAKAI

MONROVIA – Dr. Q. Somah Paygai Sr., former Chairman...

LIBERIA: CDC SECRETARY GENERAL RALLIES PARTISANS TO AVOID ANTI-PEACE ACTIONS AFTER ELECTION

MONROVIA – The Secretary General of Liberia’s ruling party,...

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

SPEECH

LEGAL

spot_imgspot_img

COUNTY NEWS

COMMENTARY
COMMENTARY

Share via
Copy link
%d