Media Impact of the Campaign On 22 June, UNHCR issued a press release to warn that many of the world’s stateless may miss out on vaccinations as a result of their lack of citizenship or proof of identity. The press release refers to UNHCR’s recent report “The Impact of COVID-19 on Stateless Population” which notes that the majority of national immunization plans do not provide clarity on their coverage of stateless people. On 6 May, UNHCR organized a media briefing in Makassar, Indonesia to inform journalists of UNHCR’s mandate on statelessness and its work to improve access to universal birth registration for refugees in Indonesia, particularly in Makassar. On 1 June, UNHCR Thailand published the story of Yutthachai Jaju, a formerly stateless person, on UNHCR’s website and social media platforms for the UNHCR’s “Refugee Voices” series. Yutthachai Jaju works as a Community Mobilizer providing legal assistance to stateless persons in Chiang Rai Province, Thailand. In Madagascar, in anticipation of the introduction of a bill for a new citizenship law in the National Assembly, the NGO Focus Development Association (FDA) called on its network of journalists to provide media coverage on the bill. The Members of Parliament who are the holders of the bill and FDA participated in various television and radio programs to discuss the issue. The bill was covered on the national TV channel TVM in its program “Lazao ny marina” (“Tell the truth”) on 12 May, on the TV channel RTA in the program “Ca me dit” on 22 May, during the news program of the radio station Antsiva on 27 May, and during a special broadcast on TV Plus on 3 June. On 28 May, in Armenia, UNHCR broadcast the story of a stateless person who is currently receiving assistance from a partner organization of UNHCR to obtain a passport. The video and is part of a broader effort by UNHCR to raise public awareness in Armenia. On 27 May, USA for UNHCR, a civil society partner of UNHCR in the United States, published a news story about a stateless Harvard student and member of the NGO United Stateless who is raising awareness of statelessness issues in the United States. In South Africa, the issue of statelessness received media coverage on different channels. On 22 March, the NGO Lawyers for Human Rights (LHR) issued an op-ed on universal birth registration and persisting challenges in South Africa. On 24 April, LHR was interviewed by The Saturday Star on the human rights consequences of the Namibian Government’s refusal to issue travel documents to twin babies born to a surrogate mother in South Africa. On 26 May, LHR was interviewed by CNBC Africa on access to COVID-19 vaccines for undocumented people in South Africa. In April, in the United Kingdom, UNHCR published the report “I am human” to shine a light on the predicament of stateless people in the UK on the long path to recognition and residency status, which often takes years or even decades. The report is the result of a participatory assessment carried out in the UK. On 2 June, the Swiss National Radio broadcast a program on the plight of stateless persons in Switzerland featuring an interview with a stateless refugee and with the Head of Office of UNHCR Bureau for Switzerland and Liechtenstein. John, a stateless man residing in the UK, was interviewed by UNHCR for the report “I am human”. © UNHCR/Katie Barlow 11

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