The President’s draft law on citizenship will lead to violations of the rights of people in occupation and those who are seeking protection

According to human rights defenders, the draft law of the President on citizenship No. 10425 needs significant revision. If it is adopted in its current version, it will create risks of rights violations for residents in occupation, as well as stateless people, their children and children of protection seekers in Ukraine.

The Members of the Coalition dealing with the protection of the rights of victims of armed aggression against Ukraine called on the authorities to finalise the draft law “On some issues in the field of migration regarding the grounds and procedure for acquiring and terminating Ukrainian citizenship”.

In particular, the adoption of the draft law will lead to the fact that children who were born in the territory of Ukraine from stateless parents or from parents who need additional protection will lose their right to citizenship by birth or by territorial origin, which they have in accordance with the law “On the Citizenship of Ukraine”.

Human rights defenders point out that such deterioration of the situation of children born in Ukraine will contradict Article 22 of the Constitution of Ukraine, because it prohibits narrowing the content and scope of existing rights and freedoms when adopting new laws or amending existing laws.

Another problem that experts draw attention to is that the draft law does not take into account the realities of the occupied territories. The project proposes to deprive the citizenship of Ukrainians who voluntarily obtained the citizenship of the aggressor state. Such approaches, human rights defenders point out, do not take into account the interests of Ukrainian citizens who live in temporarily occupied territories and are forced to obtain Russian passports for physical survival and the exercise of their rights and freedoms. Moreover, Russia is conducting campaigns on forced passportization in all occupied territories.

“It is impossible to talk about the voluntary acquisition of Russian citizenship in conditions of occupation, when the aggressor country uses various means of intimidation and coercion of citizens of Ukraine living in the temporarily occupied territory until they obtain Russian citizenship”, human rights defenders say.

The full text of the position, which also includes other problems of the draft law, can be found here (in Ukrainian).

For information: The Coalition of organisations dealing with the protection of the rights of victims of armed aggression against Ukraine includes Human Rights Centre ZMINA, NGO “Donbas SOS”, NGO “CrimeaSOS”, Charitable Fund “Right to Protection”, Charitable Foundation “EAST-SOS”, NGO “Civil Holding GROUP OF INFLUENCE”, Charitable Foundation “Stabilization Support Services”, Crimean Human Rights Group.