UNINFORMED GUIDANCE That said, in addition to these limited rights, stateless people also struggle with misinformation that further prevents them from accessing rights and services. • Stateless persons are granted only a handful of rights, such as education and some categories of employment. Generally, ta'arif certificates issued by mukhtars, or QeD (understudy) cards issued by General Security (when applicable) would be enough for stateless to access such services. Fig 16. Mukhtars who offered a correct response to each of following rights of stateless in Lebanon 80% 77% 64% • As such, this system places great power in the hands of local elected officials, making stateless persons dependent on the mukhtar’s knowledge on these issues and the personal relationship they bear with him/her. It has happened that mukhtars’ mistakes or misconduct deeply hamper the person’s status (4.7% of respondents). • Under such circumstances, it is no surprise that stateless respondents highly regard their mukhtar (61%), as they turn to them for documentation and guidance. However, a sizeable proportion of contacted mukhtars (43%) had inaccurate knowledge on stateless persons’ rights, which accentuates the risk that this community will miss out on such services. • Furthermore, 13% of the contacted mukhtars do not grant ta'arif certificates for various reasons, such as fear of liability. For those who do, they follow two main criteria: their familiarity with the person’s parental history (53%) and the origins of the stateless person, who would have to be from the mukhtar’s village (34%). 36% 33% 14% Access to Education Right to property or inheritance Access hospitals on their own expenses Presenting official exams (G9 and 12) Marriage Issuance of a registration: driver's license Lebanese husband and stateless wife Note: Stateless persons can access all of the above-mentioned rights, except owning property and inheritance. Exception: Under-study individuals can own movable goods. © 2021 Siren Associates. All Rights Reserved.