Vietnam, Southeast Asian nations seek ways to address statelessness
Senior officials from Vietnam and seven other Southeast Asian nations, and representatives from United Nations agencies and international organisations looked into civil registration, legal identity documentation, and the prevention of statelessness at a roundtable in Hanoi on October 25.
The event was jointly held by the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) with the aim of enhancing efforts by countries in addressing statelessness.
In his remarks, Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Minh Vu stressed the need for Southeast Asian nations to tighten their coordination in preventing and reducing statelessness nationally, regionally and globally, saying it will help to better manage the population and migration, as well as protect and promote human rights.
UNHCR Asia-Pacific Director Indrika Ratwatte lauded progress made by Southeast Asian nations in addressing statelessness over the past years, and noted his belief that such achievements, together with experience exchange, will encourage them to work harder in order to put an end to the problem.
UN Resident Coordinator in Vietnam Pauline Tamesis stressed that stronger actions and objectives are needed to settle the issue more effectively in the region.
The participants discussed the connection between ending statelessness and poverty reduction and the full implementation of sustainable development goals.
According to the UNHCR, a stateless person is “a person who is not considered as a national by any State under the operation of its law”. Today, millions of people around the world are denied a nationality. As a result, they often aren't allowed to go to school, see a doctor, get a job, open a bank account, buy a house or even get married.
