BACKGROUND BACKGROUND statelessness situation covering Australia, Asia, East Asia, Melanesia, Micronesia, Polynesia and South and Southeast Asia were drafted. Through these summaries we aimed to gather and analyse the available literature and reports regarding stateless communities and populations across the Asia-Pacific region. This research compared the official populations number provided by states to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (‘UNHCR’) against other publicly available data of population numbers. Scope and Limitation of the study The current report is the first edition of SEAP, and its geographic scope of Asia and the Pacific does not include Central Asia. Since the mapping was supposed to be an internal exercise to identify strategic priorities, the research did not cover Central Asia due to the existence of the Central Asian Network on Statelessness3. This encyclopaedia will be followed by a second edition with an expanded scope to include Central Asia along with individual country factsheets for the entire Asia-Pacific region. A comprehensive analysis of the legal frameworks of every country in the region was outside of the scope of this research. The study covers:  The structure of the citizenship laws of each country in the region, specifically;  identifying the method of acquisition of citizenship,  discriminatory elements, and  legal safeguards for foundlings and children born to stateless parents.  A summary of treaty ratification by each state is included in this report, including reservations by states to relevant articles concerning access to nationality and non-discrimination in nationality rights.  Specifically, the treaty ratification summary covers the treaties and protocols regarding statelessness and refugees that are listed below:  Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons (‘1954 Statelessness Convention’),4  Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness (‘1961 Statelessness Convention’), and5  Convention relating to the Status of Refugees6 and the Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees7 (together the ‘Refugee Convention and Protocol’). Further, the summary also covers the key human rights treaties being  International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (‘ICESCR’)8  International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (‘ICCPR’),9  International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (‘ICERD’),10  Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (‘CEDAW’),11  Convention on the Rights of the Child (‘CRC’).12 The report does not provide information on on naturalized citizenship or dual citizenship. The focus for this edition remains only on individuals who do not inherently have access to any nationality. Further, the concept of birth registration in this report has been used as a cause of statelessness, while recognizing that the lack of birth registration is also a result of the existing administrative barriers. In this study, we have not analysed the causal link between birth registration and statelessness, nevertheless we acknowledge the need for research needed in the area. Structure of SEAP In 2022, NFA decided to utilize this internal mapping and sub-regional summaries referred to above to develop SEAP. The objectives of SEAP were defined: to provide an overview of the statelessness situation in the Asia-Pacific region and to highlight and advocate for greater engagement with the issue. It also aims to identify areas of further collaboration among stakeholders in the field of statelessness. SEAP includes two substantive elements: a regional overview and four sub-regional overviews (with regions defined as East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia and the Pacific). Each chapter is comprised of four sections being: 1. Laws 2. Population 3. Causes of Statelessness 4. Stakeholders Laws This section contains two elements, first an overview of the citizenship laws of each region, sub-region and country, and second the treaty ratification rates of each region, sub-region and country. Citizenship laws are classified based on the means of acquisition being jus sanguinis (citizenship by descent/blood), jus soli (citizenship by birth/ territory) or a combination of the two. The report makes a distinction between jus soli and jus sanguinis modes of acquisitions but recognizes the overlap between the two principles. For example, states where citizenship is gained via descent and the place of an individual’s birth has no impact on their citizenship are categorized as solely operating through jus sanguinis. Whereas, for states where descent functions as the means of acquisition but there is distinction made in the law between children born within or outside of the country, we have noted that jus sanguinis remains the predominant form of acquisition but that jus soli factors do apply. This approach is followed as a strict distinction can be difficult to attain between the two modes of acquisition. Secondly, treaty ratification of each state is included for the eight treaties mentioned above being: 1. 1954 Statelessness Convention13 2. 1961 Statelessness Convention14 3. Refugee Convention and Protocol15 4. ICESCR16 5. ICCPR17 6. ICERD18 7. CEDAW19 8. CRC.20 The 1954 Stateless Convention and the Refugee Convention and Protocol contain relevant definitions of “stateless person” and “refugee” (including stateless refugees), which are accepted definitions under international law (discussed further below). Both the 1954 and 1961 Stateless Conventions place obligations onto states to provide protections for stateless persons and protections against statelessness. The relevant human rights treaties are noted for two key reasons: first for the explicit protections provided regarding the right to gain and transmit nationality without discrimination; and second, as the human rights protections within each treaty largely apply to all persons in the territory of the state, without distinction as to citizenship status. Reservations to relevant articles concerning citizenship in each of the covered human rights treaties (number four to eight above) have been noted. The relevant articles providing protection of nationality include: ICCPR, Article 24(2)-(3): 2. 3. Every child shall be registered immediately after birth and shall have a name Every child has the right to acquire a nationality ICERD, Article 5(d)(iii): In compliance with the fundamental obligations laid down in article 2 of this Convention, States Parties undertake to prohibit and eliminate racial discrimination in all its forms and to guarantee the 8 9 STATELESSNESS ENCYCLOPEDIA ASIA PACIFIC REPORT 2023