AHMR African Human Mobilty Review - Volume 6 No 2, MAY-AUG 2020 lessness, which would then ensure access to opportunities to the children who would have been born stateless (ISI, 2020). These are aspects that social workers can intervene in as they fight towards social justice and human rights for everyone. The pseudo-statelessness of children is precarious, as exclusion often happens when they turn 18 and are no longer covered and protected by the child protection system (Blitz and Otero-Iglesias, 2011). Sec. 4(3) of the RSA Citizenship Act (RSA, 1995) means that such a child will remain stateless until (s)he is an adult, and, even then, the application can be approved only by the Minister of Home Affairs. Application of this section is currently interpreted to be limited to children born after the enactment of the provision in 2013 (Read: Ali and Others v the Minister of Home Affairs). A social worker can help these children make sense of their situation, identify and make use of their capabilities and give support as they navigate the system as young adults and make application for citizenship. Psychosocial support from social workers that is practical, nurturing and informative and weaves the children back into the context can sustain and generate a sense of belonging. Stateless children experience life with great fragility. Like refugee children, they seem to have strengths similar to those of older children, but the vulnerability of younger children. They have a bleak sense of the future that makes it challenging for them to plan (Kohli and Mather, 2003: 203). It is crucial that social workers recognize that they are children first, who have needs and capabilities that all vulnerable children harbor; that they are children in need of care and protection and not just as stateless children. Social workers should assist them to balance resilience with vulnerability and guide them towards the achievement of psychological well-being. Despite the relative powerlessness of children in many societies, social work rightsbased work with children is powerful because space is created for their agency and voice (CPC Learning Network, 2018). Future social work research could focus on how to amplify the voices of young migrant children identified and who have been classified as stateless in South Africa. The children’s parents might be left traumatized by their own state of statelessness and therefore the children feel the need and responsibility to represent themselves and apply for citizen status. Once they obtain this status, the young adult might still harbor worries about the stateless members of his or her family, experiencing guilt at achieving sanctuary or being the one to carry the hopes of the family. This dual sense of honor-punishment pressure is complex, and a social worker can help the young person navigate this situation by reweaving of narrative threads, thus giving rise to opportunities that see them thrive. Social workers can also help build agency and assist them manage distressing experiences. This involves helping the children feel they can make active choices to help shift helplessness. These young people can also be trained by social workers to act as peer-helpers by assisting others in similar situations. This has been known to contribute to the sense of well-being derived from doing valuable acts for others (Kohli and Mather, 2003). Children do not choose to be stateless. In addition, being stateless does not 18