Statelessness Working Paper Series No. 2015/02 out that the father is a foreigner, the mother needs to apply for the child’s naturalization. In the last 6 years, Nepali officials have refused every citizenship application of children born to foreign fathers18. Nepali men with foreign spouses do not face similar restrictions. It can therefore be said that in Nepal naturalization is not a legal matter but is rather a discretionary matter of Nepali officials who have the freedom to interpret the law in line with a patriarchal culture. Moreover, the majority of trafficked women with a foreign-born child might not be able to evidence the identity of the child’s father in their home country. Exactly this constellation is not specified or defined by the clause 5 of the new Constitution`s Article 11, which leaves it up to the Federal Law to provide clear insights19. Article 11.5 of the new Constitution is also discriminatory against trafficked women because they need to reside permanently in Nepal in order for the provision to be applicable. In line with the current practice of the Nepali administration, the unfulfilled conditions would render the child stateless. It is particularly difficult for stateless and trafficked women to re-integrate in their home districts because they lack a proof of origin, which increases their risk of further abuse and exploitation. Furthermore, victims of trafficking often have to face abandonment or betrayal by their family members, who themselves fear social stigma if they accept the trafficked person20. 5. Reflections on citizenship and identity As illustrated above, citizenship encompasses a comprehensive set of rights and duties and symbolizes the full membership in a national community (see chapter three). Notwithstanding this, the impact of citizenship expands beyond a formal individual-state connection. Within this dual relation, the lack of citizenship has consequences on and is shaped by different factors that contribute to the development of an individual’s identity. Therefore, an alternative approach needs to be proposed, which positions identity at the core of the analysis. Inspired by Werbner’s and Yuval-Davis’ definition of citizenship as a ’more total relationship, inflected by identity, social positioning, cultural assumptions, institutional practices and a sense of belonging’21, the term identity is considered as the central element. An individual’s identity is shaped by multiple factors: first of all, a sense of belonging, for example to relatives, village members, colleagues at the workplace or friends. Hence, the overall social positioning in the person’s environment, including, within and in relation to other so called castes, ethnic groups, religious affiliations, gender or also geographical locations, need to be taken into account. Moreover, the sense of belonging can process and change over time and in a different context. To provide an example, a person living in a certain district might not be perceived as a member of the local community by other community members due to his/ her lacking knowledge of the local language. However, after moving to Kathmandu for a new employment people living in the capital might regard the person as such a local community member. Incentives that allow the development of selfperception, like the change of the living or working environment, type of education or shocks including the main earthquakes 2015, could contribute to shaping a person’s identity. Secondly, the cultural assumptions, based on values and beliefs, as well as, thirdly, institutional practices should be considered. Reflexively, people may affect or change these social, cultural and institutional factors and relations on the basis of a coherent conception of their own identity and equally, social, cultural and institutional factors can influence the shaping of identity. Throughout their lives, people continuously and Proposed Recommendations for the consideration of States. Retrieved 27.10.2015 from http://www.institutesi.org/UPRNepal_short.pdf 18 Ibid. 19Retrieved 27.10.2015 from http://southasiacheck.org/fact-check/citizenship-provision-in-new-constitution-isdiscriminatory-against-women/ 20 Buet, L., Bashford, P. and Basnyat M. (2012). Looking Towards Tomorrow: A Study on the Reintegration of Trafficking Survivors. pp. 27 - 28. Retrieved 27.10.2015 from http://www.asha-nepal.org/dbfiles/pages/116/reintegration_study.pdf 21 Werbner, P. and Yuval-Davis, N. (1999). Women and the new discourse of citizenship, in: Werbner, P. and Yuval-Davis, N. (Eds.) Women, citizenship and difference. London: Zed Books. 4