2019 Statelessness & Citizenship Review 1(1) persons stateless. 152 It seems that the duty to prevent statelessness shall include all cases in which a person could become stateless; thus, it applies very broadly. Bearing that in mind, it is arguable that the duty to prevent statelessness is already partly implicit in the right to nationality (of children). 153 More precisely, if states are bound by an obligation to confer nationality to children born on the territory of their state, states necessarily must also be bound by an obligation to not render them stateless and vice versa. 154 However, it is unclear how future host states of fleeing islanders might be bound under a duty to prevent statelessness. 155 There are several scholarly contributions, which have discussed a possible duty to prevent if statelessness arises from state succession. While there might be such a customary obligation in the context of state succession, 156 it seems questionable how such a duty — if legally binding — would apply in the context of disappearing island states. 157 Clearly, future host states to fleeing islanders are not successor states of submerged Pacific islands. As such, they do not have to assume the same responsibility as successors, which ‘replace a predecessor state in the responsibility for the international relations of territory’. 158 The link former nationals of the predecessor state have to the successor state is manifestly stronger than the one former islanders might have to their new state of residence. Under current customary international law, a duty to prevent statelessness might only be assumed with regard to stateless children, born on the territory of the host state. To conclude, several problems with regard to the effective enjoyment of human rights under the Conventions on Statelessness have been analysed above. However, displaced islanders in the Asia-Pacific region will usually also enjoy protection under general human rights guarantees, which are applicable to all human beings. 152 Again, please note the Introductory Note of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to the 1961 Convention (n 3): The Convention further seeks to prevent statelessness later in life by prohibiting the withdrawal of citizenship from States’ nationals — either through loss, renunciation, or deprivation of nationality — when doing so would result in statelessness. 153 As already elaborated above, there is no general right to nationality under customary 154 155 156 157 158 international law. However, it was argued that there potentially exists such a right for stateless children. This discussion, however, leaves any applicable treaty provisions unaffected. For instance, under ACHR (n 60) art 20, states are indeed bound by a general right to nationality. See, eg, CRC (n 151) art 7(1), which provides, inter alia, such a right to nationality for children. Furthermore, art 7(2) stipulates that state parties to the CRC shall ensure the implementation of the rights found in para 1 in particular where the child would otherwise be stateless. As such, art 7 could be understood as incorporating a duty to prevent statelessness. Disappearing island states cannot be bound under the duty to prevent statelessness, as they are not withdrawing their citizenships. However, even in the context of state succession, some scholars argue that it is difficult to identify a customary obligation to grant nationality to everyone. See Ziemele (n 65) 243. Dörr (n 64) [9]. Cf Blackman (n 66) 1176–83. Cf Convention on the Avoidance of Statelessness in Relation to State Succession (n 73) art 1(a). 62