30. CEIM sought information from the Bayan-Ulgii Governor (the province that Kazakh people mostly reside) regarding the number of stateless people in the area. The Governor’s office responded that most of the cases have been resolved, and that currently about 100 people's cases are under consideration, out of which 20% are children. However, these numbers represent only those individuals who are registered, and have officially submitted an application to obtain Mongolian citizenship. There are also groups of people who have not done so and are therefore not included in this number. The Governor was not able to provide an exact number on this wider group. A Mongolian National Population census is planned in 2020, which could provide a better overview of the scope of the problem. Racism and discrimination 31. In Mongolia, those who have renounced or involuntarily lost their citizenship are often discriminated against. There are a number of laws in place that aim to prevent discrimination: I. According to Article 14 (2) of the Constitution "no person shall be discriminated against on the basis of national or ethnic origin, language, race, age, sex, social origin and status, wealth, occupation and post, religion, opinion or education. Everyone shall have the right to act as a legal person." Discrimination is therefore constitutionally prohibited. This trickles down into corresponding laws such as the Criminal Code 2002 and the Family Law 1999.31 II. The Criminal Code of Mongolia32 provides that any propaganda that stirs racial discrimination or segregation will face a penalty of 5 to 10 years imprisonment. This demonstrates that Mongolia is making efforts to address discrimination. 32. However, discrimination still exists, with groups likely to be affected being stateless immigrants, children who are born to persons who are not Mongolian citizens, those who have had their citizenship revoked by the state and those who already suffer from racism. This discrimination has a widespread effect on stateless individuals, as "many stateless persons do not approach the authorities or restore or acquire Mongolian nationality, because they fear the stigma of being identified as stateless".33 Stateless Refugees 33. As set out above, the Mongolian constitution guarantees the right to seek asylum, however, in reality, protection is poor and the law permits the Agency for Foreign Citizens and Naturalization (the country’s immigration agency) to deport failed asylum seekers. 34. In Mongolia, refugees do not have access to necessary services such as health care and education, 31 Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, Consideration of reports submitted by States parties under article 9 of the Convention - Mongolia, UN Doc CERD/C/MNG/19-22 (29 August 2014). 32 Article 86, paragraph 1. 33 UN Human Rights Council, Report of the Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, Magdalena Sepúlveda Carmona, - Addendum 23rd sess., UN Doc A/HRC/23/36/Add.2, (30 May 2013) para. 51. 7