Heather Alexander acquisition for the second generation born in the country), though it removed racialised language from the provision on double birth. It also removed several instances of gender discrimination from the nationality law. First, it removed the remaining gender discrimination for nationality acquired automatically at birth and deleted what had been a confusing sequence of articles laying out special rules for the children of Malian mothers.92 It also removed gender discrimination for nationality by marriage and for the loss of nationality by declaration;93 and from the article providing for Malian nationality upon adoption, making it possible for both adoptive fathers and mothers to transmit their Malian nationality to their adoptive children.94 However, it preserved distinctions between children born in and out of wedlock. Such changes have in principle increased access to Malian nationality for some classes of persons and protected against the loss of Malian nationality for others, but have left some gaps as well. The 2011 Code is in some respects not in conformity with the requirements of the UN statelessness conventions and international human rights law. Several articles in the 2011 Code make reference to foreign parents, but not to stateless parents, raising the possibility that the children of stateless parents may be excluded. In the end, while the Code did not contain all the improvements to family law many reformers wished, it removed instances of gender discrimination and racial discrimination that were present in the 1962 Code.95 Other sections of the Code not directly related to nationality and which were pushed for by Islamic groups, however, such as the age limit for marriage for girls, were later found to be violations of regional law by the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights.96 These changes reducing gender discrimination are in keeping with the trend towards liberalisation in the region.97 Article 219 reaffirmed that international treaties related to nationality apply in Mali if ratified and published, which remains the standard in civil law countries. 3.1 Attribution of nationality at birth 3.1.1 Based on descent The 2011 Code made several important changes that have made it easier for some persons to acquire Malian nationality. Changes to Malian nationality by origin as a result of the 2011 Code are retroactively applied to minors. In Article 224 the Code preserved, however, distinctions between children born in wedlock and those born out of wedlock in the automatic acquisition of nationality at birth, continuing to require the legal establishment of a parental relationship (filiation) for those born out of wedlock.98 Under Art. 229, the establishment of the parental 92 2011 Code Art. 224. 2011 Code Arts. 233, 249. 94 2011 Code Art. 230. 95 Ousmane Koné, « La controverse autour du code des personnes et de la famille au Mali : enjeux et stratégies des acteurs » Phd dissertation, Université de Montréal (September 2015). 96 African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, APDF and IHRDA v. Republic of Mali, App. No. 046/2016, Judgment of 11 May 2018; Fédération internationale pour les droits humains, « Le nouveau Code de la famille malien : droits fondamentaux bafoués, discriminations consacrées » 8 Déc. 2011 at https://www.fidh.org/fr/regions/afrique/mali/Le-nouveau-Code-de-la-famille. 97 For an overview of laws in the region, see Manby 63-72. 98 2011 Code Arts. 224, 231. 93 RSCAS/GLOBALCIT-CR 2020/11 - © 2020 Author(s) 13