diplomatic protection. Courts have underlined that diplomatic protection is generally only available to citizens.142 In addition, one risks being denied re-entry into the country. Whereas one would expect a person with a Kenyan ID to be issued with a passport, this is not always the case. For those who come from border communities or communities whose country of origin is contested, the holding of an ID is not of itself sufficient. Practice demonstrates that more is required. Kazoni, who is a member of the Nubian community, shared his experience in the following words: I received my ID in 1990. In 1992 I applied for a passport. It was a nightmare. The officials first asked me for my great grandparents’ birth certificate. I produced my birth certificate, but they refused. They also rejected my ID. Rather, they insisted on my great grandparents’ [documentation]. How could I get it when they were born in the 1930s? Some of the Immigration Officials whom I knew advised me to change my name from Kazoni. I refused. I was not prepared to sell my identity. I received a scholarship to study for a Masters course [overseas] in 1996. However, I could not go as I did not have a passport. I had to lose this chance. In 1997 I got a job offer with [a foreign based] company. Again, the outcome was the same. In August 2000, I got a contract with [a company based in the Middle East]. The [relevant Government] Ministry approved my contract and wrote a letter to the Immigration Department. This time round I was asked to produce my parents’ ID, my birth certificate and my ID. For the first time they also allowed me to pay for the application. In January 2001 I was called for an interview. Interestingly, it was conducted by an official from the intelligence arm of the Government, not immigration. The interview lasted about one hour. I had to carry all my academic certificates. I finally received my passport in April 2001. But I lost this job as I was supposed to [report] in October 2000. 143 This experience raises several issues. It shows the difficulties that some communities face when acquiring Kenyan travel documents. The fact that a person holds an ID does not guarantee an individual a passport. Rather, members of some communities are still subjected to long processes, including vetting. There are many questions that one could pose in this regard. Are these applicants vetted because the Government does not trust documents that it has issued? Or was it because different departments in the same Government have different policies on matters relating to or touching on citizenship? Kazoni’s experience shows that actual possession of an ID card is not sufficient proof of citizenship. Clearly, the procedures are not the same for everyone. The tendency is for members of particular communities and religious persuasions to be asked to present additional documents. Indeed, requesting some applicants to produce the IDs of their great grandparents thereby placing them in a different position within the existing administrative procedures may amount to violation of the anti-discrimination provisions 24 142 Kaunda, supra, note 115 at 258. But see articles 3(2) and 8 of the International Law Commission ‘Draft Articles on Diplomatic Protection’ (2006) providing that protection should extend to non-citizens, including stateless persons. 143 Interview with Kazoni, Nairobi Province, 1 October 2009. OUT OF THE SHADOWS TOWARDS ENSURING THE RIGHTS OF STATELESS PERSONS AND PERSONS AT RISK OF STATELESSNESS IN KENYA