provided that the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights is applicable to States of origin. The right to enter one’s own country 130. International human rights law prohibits arbitrary deprivation of the right to enter one’s own country.258 The right of a person to enter his or her own country is considered to be multi-faceted. “It implies the right to remain in one’s own country. It includes not only the right to return after having left one’s own country; it may also entitle a person to come to the country for the first time if he or she was born outside the country.”259 131. Significantly, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights provides the right to enter one’s “own country” which is considered to be broader than the concept “country of his nationality”.260 It is not limited to a national in the formal sense, but also encompasses “an individual, because of his or her special ties or claims in relation to a given country, [who] cannot be considered to be a mere alien”.261 Such individuals include nationals of a country who have been stripped of their nationality in violation of international law.262 Prohibition of 258 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966), art. 12(4); African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (1981), art. 12; Protocol No. 4 to the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, securing certain rights and freedoms other than those already included in the Convention and in the first Protocol thereto, as amended by Protocol No.11 (1963), art. 3(2). arbitrary deprivation of the right to enter his or her own country guarantees that even interference provided for by law should be “reasonable in the particular circumstance”.263 The Human Rights Committee considers that there are few, if any, circumstances in which deprivation of the right to enter one’s own country can be considered reasonable.264 132. Significantly, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, to ensure the right to family unity, also provides for the right of the child and his or her parents to leave any country and to enter his or her own country.265 Application by a child or his or her parents to enter a State party to the Convention for the purposes of family unification should be dealt with by the States parties involved “in a positive, humane and expeditious manner.”266 The right to nationality 133. As summarized in chapter 2, the right to nationality is provided for in a number of international human rights treaties. Under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, States are required to adopt appropriate measures to ensure that every child has a nationality when he or she is born, including through cooperation with other States.267 Repatriation to the country of origin or potential nationality is likely to be one such measure. 259 Human Rights Committee, general comment No. 27 (1999) on freedom of movement, para. 19. 263 Ibid. 260 Human Rights Committee, general comment No. 21 (1992) on humane treatment of persons deprived their liberty, para. 20. 265 Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989), art. 10(2). 261 Ibid. 262 Ibid. 264 Ibid. 266 Ibid, art. 10(1). 267 Human Rights Committee, General Comment No. 17 (1989), para. 8. 61.