CHAPTER I CHAPTER V CHAPTER VI CHAPTER VII UN treaty bodies have decided several cases, including some originating within the OSCE region, which require States to adopt better practices to prevent childhood statelessness. These include, for example: Ibid. UNHCR, Handbook on Protection of Stateless Persons, para. 89. Decision CRC/C/88/D/95/2019, United Nations, UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) - A.M. (on behalf of M.K.A.H.) v. Switzerland (no 95/2019), adopted 22 September 2021. ANNEXES 13 RECOMMENDATIONS Best interests and ability to acquire nationality in former country of residence: In 2021, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child found that, to comply with the CRC, a host State is required to assess the best interests of a stateless child as a primary consideration and take measures to verify whether the child would be able to acquire a nationality in a previous country of residence.27 25 26 27 CHAPTER IV UN treaty body decisions on children’s right to a nationality CHAPTER III Other key features of effective approaches to statelessness include a low standard of proof and a shared burden of proof. It is difficult to ‘prove a negative’, and this is particularly true with respect to statelessness. Many (but not all) stateless people have little or no documentation that can prove or disprove anything relating to nationality. Furthermore, stateless people often have to endure many years without a legal identity or status and have often experienced serious trauma, persecution, marginalization or other harm. For some, this results in them being unable to explain their life histories in the linear way that some legal regimes impose. For others, it means they may not be familiar with certain facts relating to countries in which they lived, because they were excluded from many aspects of ‘normal’ life, including education and formal work opportunities. In addition to a low standard of proof, legal systems should ensure that the State shares the burden of proof — especially with respect to stateless children.26 Governments often have access to information that is unavailable to a stateless person. For example, stateless migrants may not be able to obtain any information from the officials of a country in which they were born or previously lived, whereas officials of a host State may be able to obtain information, such as a response from an embassy that confirms the stateless person is not considered a national of the country of birth or former residence. Robust legal systems must ensure that these factors are adequately addressed in laws, policies and practices, so that stateless people can, in fact, access legal status and nationality even if they lack proof of statelessness. CHAPTER II born to diplomats or migrants in transit, there should also be safeguards to ensure that such children are not left stateless.25