Acquisition of nationality through naturalization Law reform enabling acquisition of nationality by registration CIVIL SOCIETY ADVOCACY For many years, local civil society organizations and the Catholic Church in Kwale advocated with the county and the national Government to recognize as nationals the Makonde who had arrived in the 30s. Other advocacy messages were directed at the Government task force for the Identification and Registration of Eligible Stateless Persons as Kenyan Citizens.91 These advocacy efforts raised a number of concerns including Kenya’s long history of discriminatory practices in issuing citizenship documents.92 Women’s and children’s rights movements also lobbied the Government.93 After numerous complaints by a large number of affected persons, the issue was lodged with the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (“Commission”). In 2007, the Commission released a report on the issuance of national identity cards. The report concluded that “specific ethnic groups face almost unsurmountable challenges in obtaining ID cards” for a number of reasons, including a weak legislative framework and systemic discrimination.94 The Commission made a number of recommendations for review of the Constitution and the legislative framework related to citizenship and entitlement to Kenyan ID cards. REFORM OF THE CONSTITUTION IN 2010 The Kenyan Government responded to the concerns raised by the Commission. In 2010, following a referendum, Kenya adopted a new Constitution with a revised chapter on citizenship. The 2010 Constitution retains descent from either parent as the basis for citizenship. However, for the first time, the Constitution provides that every citizen is 91 The Gazette Notice No. 7881 stipulates that the Terms of Reference of the task force was to: (a) identify all persons who are claiming stateless person status in Kenya; (b) develop vetting, verification and eligibility criteria for stateless persons to be used together with a comprehensive stateless persons database; (c) develop modalities, timelines and cost estimates for the identification and registration of stateless persons in Kenya; (d) develop a sensitization programme for Kenya host communities for the seamless integration of stateless persons; (e) examine and recommend an appropriate legal and policy framework for the identification, registration and integration of stateless persons; and (f) identify emerging international best practices in the management of stateless persons in the context of national security. The first Task Force was established in 2015, and a second was established in August 2019. 92 Bronwen Manby, Citizenship in Africa: The Law of Belonging (Bloomsbury, 2019), page 189. 93 Ibid. 94 Kenya National Human Rights Commission, An Identity Crisis? A Study on the Issuance of National Identity Cards in Kenya, 2007, page 24. U N H C R > G P P A C T I O N 1 : R E S O LV I N G E X I S T I N G M A J O R S I T U AT I O N S O F S TAT E L E S S N E S S 67