Prevention through acquisition at birth: Substantive Law: As mentioned above, legislation of the Kyrgyz Republic employs the jus sanguinis principle and grants nationality to any child whose parent(s) are Kyrgyz nationals at the time of the child’s birth, irrespective of the place of birth (the 2007 Citizenship Law, Article 12.1). A child of a Kyrgyz and foreign parent maybe granted Kyrgyz nationality upon submission of a written consent of both parents, irrespective of the place of the child’s birth (Article 12.2). If one of the child’s parents was a Kyrgyz national at the time of the child’s birth and the other stateless or of unknown nationality, the child is granted nationality of the Kyrgyz Republic irrespective of their place of birth (Article 12.3). A child born in the Kyrgyz Republic whose parents are stateless but permanently residing in the Kyrgyz Republic is recognized as a national of the country (Article 12.4). Finally, a child who is found in the Kyrgyz Republic and whose parents are unknown is also considered a national of the country (Article 12.5). The 2007 Citizenship Law does not differentiate between genders and both parents have an equal right to pass on citizenship to their children. If a child is eligible for nationality at birth under the laws of the Kyrgyz Republic, it is granted whether they were born in or out of wedlock. It should, however, be mentioned that Article 12.3 of the 2007 Citizenship Law, which guarantees the attainment of nationality at birth by a child whose parent is a Kyrgyz national and the other a stateless person, may require evidence of legal affiliation of the child to the Kyrgyz parent in order to obtain citizenship if they were born out of wedlock. The Law on Acts of Civil Status of 12 April 2005 (the 2005 Civil Status Acts Law), provides all the necessary legal measures related to familial affiliations, in addition to the Rules on the Manner of Registration of Civil Status Acts in the Kyrgyz Republic as approved by the Order of the Ministry of Justice of the Kyrgyz Republic No 91 dated 13 June 2001 (the 2001 Civil Status Registration Rules). According to Article 50, of the 2005 Civil Status Law, affiliation is made either upon an application by the parents or by a court decision. The 2001 Civil Status Registration Rules further enhance the procedure by referring to the need for a submission of a written application and a copy of the child’s birth certificate, in order to register affiliation (Section 6, para. 2). No specific inconsistencies exist with regard to the procedures of affiliation of a child to a parent. Procedural issues and internal consistency: The three provisions of Article 12 of the 2007 Citizenship Law which pertain to the acquisition of nationality in the Kyrgyz Republic by a child whose parents have different nationalities (Article 12.2), or whose parents are stateless (Article 12.3 and 12.4) may present procedural and internal inconsistencies that could result in facing the risk of statelessness. Article 12.2 requires a written consent to be submitted by the parents with different nationalities for a child to be recognized as a Kyrgyz national. Although, neither the 2007 Citizenship Law, nor the 2007 Citizenship Regulations adopted to implement the Law, provide legal protection to the child if the parents fail to reach an agreement on the nationality of their child. While the provision is not inconsistent, it may increase the risk of statelessness if the child cannot acquire the nationality of either parent. Articles 12.3 and 12.4 grant Kyrgyz citizenship to children born to a stateless person and a citizen, as well as to children born to stateless parents. However, procedural obstacles related to the formal recognition of a stateless person under the Kyrgyz legislation could jeopardize the implementation of Articles 12.3 and 12.4 of the 2007 Citizenship Law and put a child, to whom these provisions are applicable, at risk of statelessness. According to the 2007 Citizenship Regulations, a person whose affiliation to Kyrgyz nationality has yet 63 Small Changes ‫ ـ‬Big Gains: An Action Plan to Prevent and Reduce Statelessness in the Kyrgyz Republic