Consequences of statelessness The consequences of being stateless are considerable. Nationality is an individual’s basic right as it provides the legal connection between an individual and a state. Stateless persons, without nationality, are incapable of exercising their most fundamental rights. At a national level, stateless persons have no definite legal status, no clearly defined rights and are at the mercy of the administrative authorities. Stateless persons are often denied basic rights and access to employment, housing, education, health care and pensions. They may not be able to own property, open a bank account, get married legally or register the birth of a child. Some face long periods of detention, because they cannot prove who they are or where they are from. UNHCR’s mandate on statelessness Through a series of resolutions beginning in 1994, the UN General Assembly gave UNHCR the formal mandate to prevent and reduce statelessness around the world, as well as to protect the rights of stateless persons. Twenty years earlier, the Assembly had asked UNHCR to provide assistance to individuals under the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness. UNHCR's governing Executive Committee provided guidance on how to implement this mandate in a "Conclusion on the Identification, Prevention and Reduction of Statelessness and the Protection of Stateless Persons" issued in 2006. This requires the agency to work with governments, other UN agencies and civil society to address the problem. UNHCR activities in the field are grouped into four categories. • Identification: Gather information on statelessness, its scope, causes and consequences. • Prevention: Address the causes of statelessness and promote accession to the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness. • Reduction: Support legislative changes and improvements to procedures to allow stateless persons to acquire a nationality and help individuals take advantage of these changes. • Protection: Intervene to help stateless persons to exercise their rights and promote accession to the 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons. 2. The international legal framework relating to statelessness Statelessness is an international phenomenon which is demonstrated by the fact that the issue is touched on in a number of international instruments. Three multilateral treaties (all of which have been ratified by Ireland) are of particular significance: (i) • The 1951 Convention on the Status of Refugees • The 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons • The 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness 1951 Convention on the Status of Refugees and the 1967 Protocol Page 5 of 26