68 Brewer The Dominican Republic hosts a large population of stateless persons, many of whom are the children of Haitian immigrants who work in the sugar cane industry. According to a 2011 report by the US Department of Labor, ‘Approximately 1 million undocumented immigrants live in the Dominican Republic and an estimated 13 percent of all children younger than age 15 have no birth documents.’22 While the 2002 Dominican Republic Constitution provides for citizenship based on jus soli (except for the children of diplomats and workers ‘in transit’) the Migration Law 285-04 of 200423 expanded the definition of ‘in transit’ to include non-residents, including migrant workers. Although constitutional revisions in 2010 attempted to address this problem, subsequent legal developments essentially mean that many migrant Haitians or those of Haitian descent have been unable to obtain registration of their children born in the Dominican Republic.24 Without birth certificates, such children are effectively stateless unless they can otherwise prove their nationality.25 Ultimately, undocumented migrant workers in the Dominican Republic will pass along their undocumented status to their children,26 thereby increasing the number of stateless children. The Malaysian State of Sabah has faced significant problems with respect to statelessness among the children of migrant workers primarily from Indonesia and the Philippines who work in the palm oil industry.27 Without documentation to prove nationality, stateless children will not be able to access government services, including healthcare, and education.28 According to the Asia Foundation, there were approximately 52,000 stateless children as of late 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 United States Department of Labor’s Bureau of International Labor Affairs, 2011 Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor, 188. Dominican Republic General Law on Migration (No. 285-04) of 2004. Open Society Justice Initiative, ‘Dominican Republic Court Ruling Raises’ Mass Statelessness Threat’ (2 October 2013) <http://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/press -releases/dominican-republic-court-ruling-raises-mass-statelessness-threat> accessed 20 October 2013. See also Polly Price, ‘Statelessness in the United States: Current Reality and a Future Prediction’ (2012) 46 Vand J Transnat’l L 443, 457-458. Stacie Kosinski, ‘State of Uncertainty: Citizenship, Statelessness, and Discrimination in the Dominican Republic’ (2009) 32 B C Int’l & Comp L Rev 377, 383. Childs Rights International Network, Dominican Republic: Children’s Rights in the UN Special Procedures’ Reports (25 April 2012) <www.crin.org/resources/infodetail.asp?ID =28255> accessed 14 September 2013. Anthea Mulakala, Sabah’s Stateless Children, IN ASIA: WEEKLY INSIGHT AND ANALYSIS FROM THE ASIA FOUNDATION (8 December 2010) <asiafoundation.org/in-asia/2010/ 12/08/sabahs-stateless-children/> accessed 14 September 2013. Ibid. tilburg law review 19 (2014) 64-73