Maha Mamo was given Brazilian citizenship during the statelessness side event at UNHCR’s 2018 Executive Committee meeting, Switzerland
©UNHCR/S. Hopper
On 29 and 30 November, the Eleventh Session of the
UN Forum on Minority Issues was convened in Geneva
with the theme “Statelessness: A Minority Issue”. The
Forum gathered over 500 participants representing
governments, the UN, intergovernmental, national and
regional organizations, and civil society.
In preparation for the 2019 High-Level Event on
Statelessness, two regional preparatory meetings took
place. From 12 to 14 November, a Regional Meeting
on Statelessness was held in Saly, Senegal, organized
by UNHCR and ECOWAS. The discussions focused on
the implementation of the Banjul Plan of Action on the
Eradication of Statelessness in West Africa and the road
towards the 2019 High-Level Event on Statelessness.
On 18 and 19 December, the High Commissioner’s
Dialogue on Protection Challenges in 2018 looked at
“Protection and solutions in urban settings: engaging with
cities”. The Dialogue focused on the role of cities and
local authorities in protecting and assisting displaced and
stateless populations.
On 4 and 5 December, an International Statelessness
Conference took place in Minsk, Belarus, organized by
the Ministry of Interior of the Republic of Belarus, the
Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) Executive
Committee and UNHCR. The event brought together
over 100 participants, including representatives from the
CIS, the UN agencies in Belarus, and participants from
academia and civil society. Participants discussed current
practices, gaps and challenges in terms of addressing
statelessness.
Sisters Maha and Souad Mamo were granted Brazilian
nationality, with Maha receiving hers during a surprise
ceremony that took place at a side event during the 69th
session of the UNCHR Executive Committee meeting in
Geneva on 4 October. In June, the two young women had
been the first to have their statelessness status confirmed
under Brazil’s new migration law, which grants protection
to stateless persons and provides for residence and
simplified naturalization procedures.
2