7 host of soft law instruments also indicate ASEAN states’ commitment towards the protection of children’s rights in the region.37 Whilst recognizing that one size does not necessarily t all, birth registration should be seen as an important step to the prevention of statelessness. In the case of refugee and stateless children, being without birth registration puts these children at a higher risk of being traf cked for many reasons including forced labor, prostitution, forced or early marriages, and even recruitment as child soldiers; such are the far-reaching impacts and consequences of collective violence. Additionally, collective action by ASEAN states will help to create the necessary political will to implement the norms at the domestic level. It is important to note that political will is a vital element in the domestic enforcement and implementation of human rights, including those of vulnerable groups like the Rohingyas.38 As a region heavily affected by human traf cking, it is in the ASEAN states’ interest to develop a regional framework and adopt a workable uniform state practice on birth registration of refugee and stateless children. Such capacity building and mobilization will undoubtedly have a positive impact, not only in combatting human and child traf cking, but also to meet the commitments towards ending statelessness by 2024 We are cognizant of the challenges of implementing top-down approaches in an era where policy and legal framers seek for more localized approaches towards refugee protection. What this commentary stresses, is the need for more attention towards stateless children by all stakeholders at both domestic and regional levels. Ultimately, addressing the situation of these vulnerable children through birth registration will also require the involvement of non-state actors like Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) NGOs have the potential to in uence both the adoption and implementation of the ASEAN legal framework.39 Due to the context sensitive dynamics of migration, the effective implementation of the proposed laws will necessitate the engagement of the refugee host communities about the relevance of registering refugee children. Even with the (legal and practical) challenges and obstacles associated to birth registration, we remain convinced that ASEAN states should endeavor to develop and implement a workable framework as this addresses statelessness and combatting human traf cking at the same time. Without birth registration, these stateless children are left at greater risk to fall victims to child traf cking. As such, this dossier also opens up sightlines for various socio-legal approaches to tackle the issue of statelessness as a direct response to collective violence Bibliograph Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). “About ASEAN,” n.d. Accessed October 8, 2021. https://asean.org/about-us ASEAN. “Children in ASEAN: 30 Years of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.” ASEAN and UNICEF, 2019. Accessed July 2, 2021. https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/ les/resources/Children%20in%20ASEAN.pdf BBC. “The Rohingya Children Traf cked for Sex.” March 20, 2018. Accessed October 8, 2021. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-43469043 Bhabha, Jacqueline. “From Citizen to Migrant: The Scope of Child Statelessness in the TwentyFirst Century.” In Children Without a State: A Global Human Rights Challenge, ed. Jacqueline Bhabha, 1–42. Cambridge: The MIT Press Cambridge, 2011 37 For a more elaborate overview, see ASEAN Plan of Action for Children (1993); Hanoi Declaration on the Enhancement of Welfare and Development of ASEAN Women and Children (2010); Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women and Elimination of Violence Against Children in ASEAN (2013); ASEAN Regional Plan of Action on Elimination of Violence Against Children (2016); ASEAN Declaration on Strengthening Education for Out-ofSchool Children and Youth (2016) and ASEAN Early Childhood Care, Development and Education Quality Standards (2017). 38 Frank, Reduction of Mass Atrocity Crimes in East Asia, 99. 39 Ibid., 102. fi fi . fi . . fi . . . fi fi Genocide Studies and Prevention 15, no. 2 https://doi.org/10.5038/1911-9933.15.2.1863. . fl fi © 2021 y fi Dossier: Stateless Rohingya