The Transitional Federal Charter for the Somali Republic, drafted in
2004, provides at Article 10 that:
Every person of Somali origin shall be entitled to citizenship of the
Somali Republic provided that he/she was born in the Somali Republic;
or his/her father is a citizen of the Somali Republic.
Under this law, a Somali woman who gives birth outside Somalia
cannot pass on her nationality to her children.
Legal Guidance:
1. Any person, (1) born in South Africa (2) to a Somali mother,
and (3) to a father who cannot by law pass on his nationality, has
no right to another nationality and therefore qualifies for South
African citizenship under section 2(2).
2. Any person, (1) born in South Africa (2) to a Somali mother,
and (3) to a father who is Somali or another national who is
deceased, absent or unwilling to acknowledge paternity, does not
have another nationality and therefore qualifies for South African
citizenship under section 2(2).
If the father is unable or unwilling to acknowledge paternity on
the child’s birth certificate, then the child will be unable to establish
prima facie evidence of his or her link to her father, and thus, will
presumably be unable to access the father’s nationality. The child
would qualify under section 2(2) for South African citizenship.
Malawi
Malawi was historically part of the former Rhodesia and Nyasaland.
During colonisation, many Malawians migrated to what is currently
Zimbabwe to work in the mines and on the farms. This has resulted
in many persons becoming stateless, due to a combination of
Malawian and foreign citizenship laws and broad interpretation
thereof.
Finding a solution for clients: immigration status and citizenship
Somalia
Malawi does not permit dual citizenship for adults. The result, as
outlined in section 7 of the Malawi Citizenship Act of 1966, is as
follows: anyone born to Malawian parents, who is 'also, to his own
knowledge, a citizen of some other country', must – between his
21st and 22nd birthday – take an oath of allegiance, make a
declaration of their wish to retain Malawian citizenship, and make a
declaration of their intention to reside permanently in Malawi. If he
does not comply by age 22, he automatically loses his Malawian
citizenship.
Lawyers for Human Rights and its partners have documented
that this legal provision is implemented by Malawian foreign
Promoting citizenship and preventing statelessness in South Africa: A practitioner’s guide
89
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