without nationality. The word Bidoon translates to ‘without’, as this term comes from the description of those who are ‘’without nationality.’ Bahrain has historically made many positive steps in granting nationality to many Bidoons. In 2008 for example 7,012 individuals – including many Bidoons – were naturalised.15 It must be noted however, that naturalisation being a discretionary act, and naturalised citizenship having fewer rights attached to it, this is not the most appropriate solution to the statelessness of the Biddoon. Article 6.3 of Bahraini nationality law for example, sets out the rights that a naturalised citizen does not have access to, such as political rights for the first 10 years after naturalisation. 12. However, there are still estimated to be several thousand stateless Bidoon in Bahrain. Independent groups have estimated there to be between at least 2,000 – 5,000 Bidoon families who were left behind and were not granted nationality despite eligibility.16 Their situation is one of protracted statelessness. Children of stateless fathers continue to be born, and remain, stateless, due to gender discrimination in the nationality law and poor implementation of the provisions which allow women to transfer nationality in exceptional cases (see below). The failure to resolve this situation not only leaves thousands of lives in a precarious legal situation,17 but also violates Bahrain’s obligations under the ICCPR and, when children are born into this cycle of statelessness, its obligations under the CRC. Unfortunately, the significant human rights concerns of the Bidoons in Bahrain have not been addressed in previous UPR cycles of Bahrain. 13. In addition to Bidoon, many of Bahrain’s Ajam population, an ethnoreligious group of predominantly Shia individuals of Persian descent, remain stateless. Combined with longstanding forms of institutionalised discrimination against the country’s majority Shia population, the denial of citizenship for Ajam has forced the community disproportionately into lower socioeconomic conditions. Being both Shia and stateless, they are even more likely to be denied access to social welfare or assistance programs available to other Bahraini citizens.18 Gender discrimination in nationality law 14. Law No (10) for 1981 Amending Bahraini Citizenship Act – 1963 sets out Bahraini nationality law.19 Article 4 of the law prescribes the main mechanism of transferal of nationality, stating that: Anyone shall be regarded a Bahraini national, if: (A) Was born in Bahrain after the effective date of this act and his father was a Bahraini at the time of birth. (B) Born outside Bahrain, after the effective date of this Act, and his father was a Bahraini national at the time of birth provided that 15 UNHCR, MENA report on Statelessness, 2010, access at http://www.unhcr.org/4ce63e079.pdf http://www.bahrainrights.org/en/node 17 Bahrain Centre for Human Rights, Stateless in Bahrain, 2014 access at http://bahrainrights.org/sites/default/files/Stateless%20in%20Bahrain%20-%20Final.pdf and Blitz, B. Lynch, M, Statelessness and the Benefits of Citizenship: A Comparative Study, 2011, Edward Elgar Publishing 18 For more information on discrimination against Ajam and Bahrain’s broader Shia population, see Apart in Their Own Land: Government Discrimination Against Shia in Bahrain, Vol. I, ADHRB, BCHR, and BIRD, April 2015, http://www.adhrb.org/2015/03/adhrb-bird-and-bchr-publish-new-report-on-shia-discrimination/; and Apart in Their Own Land: Government Discrimination Against Shia in Bahrain, Vol. II, ADHRB, BCHR, and BIRD, September 2015, http://www.adhrb.org/2015/09/adhrb-releases-part-2-of-shia-discrimination-report/ 19 Bahraini Citizenship Act (last amended 1981) [Bahrain], 16 September 1963, available at: http://www.refworld.org/docid/3fb9f34f4.html 16