1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Purpose of the report and context The purpose of this study is twofold. First, it examines the Czech legal and institutional framework in relation to international standards pertaining to statelessness. Second, the study maps the practical implications for stateless persons living in the country by means of their personal testimonies and stories. The gathered data and personal accounts build a compelling image which serves as a basis for the main findings and recommendations. Issues related to the lives and status of stateless persons have so far received little attention by the expert community in the Czech Republic, be it the relevant authorities, academia or civil society. As the research behind this study is the first of its kind in the Czech Republic, the present study is necessarily an exploratory one. The research is based on a qualitative methodology, analysing testimonies of selected stateless persons. The results presented in the study are primarily based on the information gained through these interviews. Alongside this, the relevant legislative framework and the available statistical data on stateless persons in the Czech Republic are examined with a view to placing the results of the qualitative research in the wider context. 1.2 Methodology A qualitative method based on an analysis of semi-structured interviews was employed in the research. The selection of participants from amongst stateless persons was based on two main criteria determined in advance. The first criterion was that the person´s situation was assessed as stateless according to the definition of the 1954 Convention, and in some cases even confirmed in their identity documents. The second criterion, ensuring the diversity of the interviewed sample, was the duration of their statelessness. In this respect, the stage of a person’s life when statelessness came into play was also taken into consideration: statelessness from birth, for a period longer than 20 years, or for a period shorter than 20 years. At least four interviewees were included in each category. As the qualitative method and the context of the study show, the semi-structured interviews were not held with a representative sample of the stateless population in the country. Their purpose was to show the presence, different aspects and mainly human face of statelessness. This part of the research consisted of 13 interviews with a total of 15 stateless persons.4 Of these, 12 persons were male and three female. According to their own statements, the interviewed persons came from Georgia, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Iraq, Iran, Russia and Ukraine. Further interviews were conducted with persons of Palestinian origin who resided in Syria, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon. One participant was born in the Czech Republic. Two participants were deprived of liberty and the interviews were, thus, conducted in detention centres for foreign nationals. 4 10 Two interviews involved married couples. Faces of Statelessness in the Czech Republic