must be produced in a notarised translation into Turkmen, which has been certified by a consul or ambassador.131 The regulations of Tajikistan assume that the stateless parent is permanently resident elsewhere. For the Tajik ZAGS, they must produce a statelessness certificate from a state authority abroad, in a notarised translation that has been certified by a consulate.132 The regulations do not appear to cover stateless persons actually resident in Tajikistan, on a temporary or permanent basis. In Kyrgyzstan, neither the 2005 Civil Status Acts Law, nor the 2001 Civil Status Registration Rules, refers to procedures for registering a child whose parents are stateless. The Registration Rules only require133 that the child of one parent who is a Kyrgyz national and the other a stateless person, is to be registered upon joint application of the parents. Stateless people in northern Kyrgyzstan told UNHCR and its NGO partners they were concerned they would not have the documentation needed to register the birth of their children. The Survey showed that 49 children were unable to go to school, because they had no birth certificate – 8.22% of the children surveyed. In the south, the UNHCR Survey showed that 97% of children born to stateless people surveyed had received birth certificates. Most were children of mixed marriages, in which one spouse is a Kyrgyz national and the other has undetermined nationality. Kazakhstan’s Citizenship Law provides that a child born to two stateless parents who are permanently resident in the country, is a Kazakh citizen134 and his/her birth certificate is proof of citizenship.135 In practice, children who are registered are recorded as dependents of their stateless parents until the age of 16. If registered, these children and their stateless parents should be included on the National Population Database and allocated the ‘code’ that would enable them to secure State benefits or employment. Stateless persons without official documentation and registration are not allocated this ‘code’. Any children born to them on Kazakh territory and entitled to the rights and benefits of citizens are not able to enjoy them. UNHCR has learned from representatives of the Kazakh Migration Police that “in most cases stateless parents choose not to register their children as citizens”, to save their having to renounce their citizenship if the family later leaves Kazakhstan. They are apparently permitted to do this by the authorities – something that appears to undermine the child’s fundamental right to a nationality, and increases incidences of statelessness, in particular among families which decide not to leave Kazakhstan. Statistics are not available for the number of children born to stateless parents whom Kazakhstan has registered as citizens.136 In Uzbekistan, the law also requires personal identification papers and a marriage certificate from both parents registering the birth of a child137 but waives this requirement when no documentation is available.138 In such cases, a statement from medical staff, attesting to the birth is sufficient for the purposes of registration. Parents who are stateless, or with undetermined nationality, should therefore not be prevented from registering the birth of their child.139 131 Article 56, 2004 Presidential Decree No 141 ‘On Registering Civil Acts’ in Turkmenistan. Article 5(1) 2008 Regulation No 483 ‘On State Registration of Civil Acts’ in Tajikistan. 133 Section 2, paragraph 23, 2001 Rules ‘On State Registration of Civil Status Acts’ in Kyrgyzstan. 134 Article 14, 1991 Citizenship Law of Kazakhstan. 135 Ibid, Article 4. 136 In a participatory assessment with stateless persons in Chymkent, two parents told UNHCR of their concern that their children would not be able to confirm that they are Kazakh citizens. 137 Article 18, Rules ‘On Registration of Civil Acts’ in Uzbekistan No 171, April 1999. 138 Ibid. Article 18 says further, that the absence of documentation is not grounds for the ZAGS to refuse to register a birth. 139 The barriers to registering the birth of a child born abroad to a citizen and a stateless person are higher, according to an Uzbek Ministry of Justice website. Included among the documents necessary, is an Uzbek national passport with a photograph and permanent residence registration in Uzbekistan; (as well as a written request to the Consulate; birth attestation from a maternity ward; a marriage certificate, or written confirmation of paternity; two photographs of the child; a 15 euro consular fee for registration and a further 16 euros to enter the child’s details in the mother’s passport). Parents must also answer questions about their educational qualifications and their registered place of residence in Uzbekistan. No waiver is foreseen for parents unable to produce this identification, www.minjust.uz/ru/gcontent.scm?groupId=3468&sectionId=17474&contentId=17275; www.uzbekembassy.es/formularios/Birth_certificate_MotherUzbek_FatherOther.pdf. 132 ~ 22 ~