Through invaluable discussions, interactions and observations with organisations and individuals
I met with, the Fellowship has provided me with:
Concrete and tangible ideas for expanding the SLC’s capacity to assist more stateless
children nationally, which I have already begun to implement;
A blueprint for further expanding the SLC to assist stateless adults (as well as children)
implemented since my return;
Inspiration for establishing a formal working group of Australian lawyers interested in
addressing this issue in Australia through strategic law reform;
Critical insights into successful engagement with governments and decision makers on
law reform on this issue;
A range of invaluable contacts that I intend to draw upon to launch a Global Network of
Stateless Legal Services, which aims to provide a forum for shared learnings and
professional development resources between existing stateless legal service providers as
well as support the establishment and development of new stateless legal services in global
regions lacking such services;
Reinvigorated motivation for supporting the establishment of an Australian stateless led
advocacy organisation on this issue, through which people with lived experience of
statelessness can provide a direct line to government on law reform and other issues
impacting them.
Key Learnings for Australia from the International Context
Australia lacks a statelessness determination procedure (SDP), or specific visa category for
stateless people, making it very difficult to correctly and comprehensively identify stateless people
and ensure they are protected.
The problem a lack of an SDP presents for meaningfully addressing statelessness in Australia was
highlighted during my visit to England. The United Kingdom (UK) introduced an SDP in 2013.
While, as many experts I met with on my visit were intent on emphasising, it is an imperfect
system, its existence nevertheless demonstrates how further advanced the UK is in understanding
and addressing statelessness compared to Australia.
The United States is also making positive advancements in improving mechanisms for identifying
stateless people, thanks in large part to the advocacy work of United Stateless (discussed in further
detail in this Report).
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