Article 1 of the Convention Relating to the Status of Stateless Persons, adopted on September 28, 1954 by a conference of plenipotentiaries convened by the Economic and Social Council, in Resolution No. 526 (D-17) of April 26, 1954, https://www.ohchr.org/AR/ProfessionalInterest/ Pages/StatelessPersons.aspx 2 3 Frontiers Ruwad Association, unpublished field study, 2012. MAQ cases in Lebanon, Frontiers Ruwad Association Report of the second session of UPR, 2015, http:// ruwadhoukouk.org/pdf/UPR_FR%20STL%20Submission_ Translation_AR_Draft_FINAL.pdf 4 Decision 2825/1924, Decision 15/1925, Law of 31/1/1946 5 Law om Civil Registration of Personal Status Documents (no number), dated 7/12/1951 6 FOOTNOTES 7 Decision 15/1925, Article 1 (3) 8 Decision 15/1925, Article 2 The government representative are the members of Working Group on Statelessness that was formed in 2012 at the initiative of Frontiers Right. It members include representative of the Ministry of Interior and Municipalities – the General Directorate of Personal Status, the General Directorate of General Security, The Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Social Affairs, the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, the Ministry of Public Health, UNHCR, OHCHR, UNICEF and Frontiers Rights Association. 9 The Lebanese nationality was established by the French High Commissioner Decision/Law # 2825 dated 30 August 1924; published in the Official Gazette # 1804 on 30/09/1924. 10 Decree #8837 dated 15 January 1932 entitled the “formation of the residents and migrants Lebanese Population Census Committees; published in the Official Gazette # 2606 on 18 January 1932. 11 For more details on the legal ground of the different origins and causes of statelessness in Lebanon, you can read “Invisible Citizens” Arabic version link: https://www. ruwadhoukouk.org/pdf/InvisibleCitizens.pdf 12 In our sample, the majority are Syrian women and migrant domestic workers of different nationalities. 13 Article 13 of the Law of the Organization of the Ministry of Interior and Municipalities, Decree No. 4082 of 14/10/2000, official Gazette Issue 50, 2/11/. 14 Prime Ministry Memo No. 51 of 1993 which required a prior approval from the General Security before concluding the religious marriage of Lebanese Muslim and Druze man to a foreign woman. 15 Regularization fines of 300 thousand L.L (around 200 $) per person/per number of years. 16 17 This is the case particularly for Syrian couples. Decree-law No. 34 of 26/8/1932 regulated the travel of nomads on Lebanese territory, and considered every person travelling in Lebanon with no place of residence or a particular home a nomad. These nomads were required to have an id issued by the Police – individually, as well as for the head of the family on behalf of all his family and children below 13 years of age – which shall include personal evidence requested by whoever was in Lebanon when this decree entered into effect. Nomads who come from outside Lebanon cannot move inside it unless they present their ID and the correct papers. Decree No. 34 of 26/8/1932 “regulates the travels of nomads on Lebanese territory”, official gazette issue 2708 of 12/9/1932. 18 Those who met the census conditions and did register were considered Lebanese citizens. 19 SEEKING NATIONALITY | FOOTNOTES UNHCR launches a campaign to help 12 million stateless persons across the world, UNHCR website, https://news. un.org/ar/story/2011/08/147462 1 The Seven Villages separated from Lebanon and joined Palestine by virtue of the Paulet-Newcombe Agreement between France and Britain in 1923. Its residents were therefore considered Palestinians during the signing of the Treaty of Lausanne in 1923, although, according to the Treaty and Articles 3 and 4 of Decision No. 2825, they had the right of option between the Palestinian nationality and the nationalities of the countries that were established after the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire, including the Lebanese nationality (provided that they move their place of residence to Lebanese territory), within a time limit that was constantly renewed until 1958. 20 Great Britain and France, Exchange of Notes Constituting an Agreement respecting the Boundary Line between Syria and Palestine from the Mediterranean to El Hamme. Paris, March 7, 1923. Available at https://upload.wikimedia.org/ wikipedia/commons/9/9d/EXCHANGE_OF_NOTES_ CONSTITUTING_AN_AGREEMENT_BETWEEN_THE_ BRITISH_AND_FRENCH_GOVERNMENTS_RESPECTING_ THE_BOUNDARY_LINE_BETWEEN_SYRIA_AND_ PALESTINE_FROM_THE_MEDITERRANEAN_TO_EL_ HAMME%2C_PARIS_MARCH_7%2C_1923._01.pdf FRH Legal services and assistance is provided based on selection criteria such as poverty, illiteracy, ignorance of legal and judicial procedures or the claimant being a foundling born out of wedlock or born 21 98