2022 Statelessness & Citizenship Review 4(1) group benefitted the most from the new nationality legislation passed in October 2019 in Iran. Many believe the revised law was inspired by the case of Maryam Mirzakhani,23 an Iranian mathematician.24 She was married to a Czech man and had a daughter who was denied Iranian nationality because of the gaps in the Iranian nationality laws. Dr Mirzakhani died of cancer at the age of 40 in July 2017, wishing that her child could benefit from Iranian nationality.25 This became one of the key advocacy points at the time of the parliamentary debates to amend the 2006 Law.26 CONCLUSION This brief commentary addresses three current causes for the deprivation of the right to have identification documents in Iran. New legal developments have only addressed one cause: being born to an Iranian mother and a non-Iranian father. This is still an important step to address the right to have a documentation. However, the large number of applicants and the bureaucratic administration are two main barriers that slow the process of acquiring documentation. States play a crucial role in reducing and preventing lack of documentation. With some changes in law or its enforcement, states can reduce the number of undocumented children. Being undocumented not only affects a certain individual, community or group, but also has potential social, economic and health effects for everyone within a state — particularly since these children are a nation’s future adults. Although the role of states in passing new laws or enforcing existing laws is undeniable, civil society also has a key role in raising its collective voice so that policy change can happen. One way to do this is by disseminating personal stories, such as those of Dr Mirzakhani, which can have an emotional effect on the decision-making process. Figures and numbers can show the severity of the subject matter, but personal stories can highlight aspects of humanity that cannot be indicated through numbers: they create the empathy that can lead to change. 23 24 25 26 Hajikhani (n 9); Meydari (n 3). See Martin L White, ‘Maryam Mirzakhani’, Encyclopedia Britannica (Web Page) <https://www.britannica.com/biography/Maryam-Mirzakhani>. Leila Alikarami, ‘The Will of Maryam Mirzakhani: Solving the Incomplete Equation of Citizenship for Children Born to Iranian Mothers’, BBC News (21 July 2017) <https://www.bbc.com/persian/blog-viewpoints-40685457>. ibid. 144