APPENDIX I: Glossary of key terms This glossary contains descriptions of terms that might come up during the activities or when reading the book. It aims at ensuring that the instructor has a basic understanding of and is able to answer questions involving these terms thus making the facilitation of the activities easier. Birth certificate / birth registration Birth registration is the process of recording the occurrence and characteristics of a birth within a country’s civil registry. It establishes the existence of a person under law, and lays the foundation for safeguarding civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights. Because a child’s place and date of birth, and the identity of the parents, is usually recorded, birth registration can be an important tool to establish a child’s nationality. A birth certificate is the document issued to attest birth registration and evidence of the State’s legal recognition of the child. Citizenship A legal link between an individual and a state (country) that entails specific legal responsibilities and rights. A person who holds citizenship is recognised as a full member of the political community of the state. He/she is described as a “citizen”. Citizenship / nationality and citizen / national are used as synonyms in this Teaching Guide as well as in The Girl Who Lost Her Country. Citizenship by birth - Jus soli & Jus Sanguinis There are two main ways in which a child can acquire citizenship at birth: jus soli (law of the soil), whereby a child acquires the nationality of the country in which he or she is born and jus sanguinis (law of the blood), whereby a child acquires the nationality of the country of nationality of the parent(s). Every country decides which rules to apply in its law – often there is a combination of these two approaches. Citizenship by naturalisation The most common way to acquire citizenship after birth (and to change nationality) is through naturalisation. This requires an application initiated by the individual, once they have met certain requirements. Common conditions include a certain period of residence in the country prior to making an application and proving knowledge of the official language and/or its laws and customs. Convention on the Rights of the Child The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) is an important agreement by countries who have promised to protect children’s rights. It was adopted in 1989 and explains who children are, all their rights, and the responsibilities of governments. The CRC affirms that every child has the right to a nationality. A Committee of experts meets in Geneva several times a year to monitor whether governments are doing enough to protect the rights in the CRC. Discrimination Discrimination is unfair treatment of one particular person or group of people. Usually the different treatment is because of the person’s sex, religion, nationality, ethnicity (culture), race, or other personal traits. Discrimination based on race is called racism. Discrimination prevents people from doing things that other people can do freely. It can happen in many ways and in many areas of life: at work, in public, and at school. Inequality and discrimination are causes of statelessness (think of the example of a nationality law that does not allow women to pass on their nationality on the same terms as men and how this leaves children like Neha stateless). Further, stateless persons face discrimination and inequality because of their statelessness. Displacement Millions of children are on the move. Some are driven from their homes by conflict, poverty or climate change; others leave in the hope of finding a better, safer life. (Forced) displacement is the involuntary or coerced movement of a person or people away from their home or even across an international border. 47