Ensure birth registration for all children born on its territory, especially those who are not registered due to the economic status of their parents, ethnicity and immigration status (Namibia); and Further strengthen efforts towards birth registration for all, with a view to effectively reaching out to disadvantaged and vulnerable groups (Turkey).4 5 In 2011, Brazil and France recommended that Thailand ratify the 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons, as well as the UN Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol. These recommendations were accepted. 6 Thailand also received a recommendation from Canada to “ensure respect for the principle of non-refoulement with respect to asylum seekers and refugees… and meet the protection needs of vulnerable peoples, such as the Rohingya, in accordance with international law;”5 and a recommendation from Vietnam regarding the protection of vulnerable groups, which it accepted. 7 Thailand also noted in its national report, the withdrawal of its reservation to Article 7 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which guarantees, the child’s right to acquire a nationality “in particular where the child would otherwise be stateless” and the right of the child to be registered immediately after birth.6 Thailand’s International Obligations 8 Despite accepting the recommendations of Brazil and France in the First Cycle, Thailand has not acceded to either the 1954 or 1961Statelessness Conventions. 9 Nonetheless, Thailand has international obligations to protect the right to a nationality and the rights of stateless persons on the basis of other UN and regional treaties to which it is a party. These include, the: • • • • • • International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (‘ICCPR’ – Article 24.3); International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (‘ICESCR’ –Articles 2.2 and 3); Convention of the Rights of the Child (‘CRC’ – Articles 2, 3, 7 and 8); Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (‘CEDAW’ – Article 9); International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (‘CERD’ – Article 5(d)(iii)); Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (‘CRPD’ – Article 18);7 and 4 UN Human Rights Council, ‘Report of the Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review: Thailand’ A/HRC/33/16 (15 July 2016), paras 158.57; 158.56. 5 UN Human Rights Council, ‘Report of the Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review: Thailand’ A/HRC/19/8 (8 December 2011), para 89.70. 6 UN Human Rights Council, ‘National Report Submitted in accordance with paragraph 5 of the annex to the Human Rights Council resolution 16/21: Thailand’ A/HRC/WG.6/25/THA/1 (12 February 2016), para 64. 7 On 5 February 2015, the Government of the Kingdom of Thailand informed the Secretary-General that it had decided to withdraw the following interpretative declaration made upon ratification: “The Kingdom of Thailand hereby declares that the application of Article 18 of the Convention shall be subject to the national laws, regulations and practices in Thailand.” 2