The rights watchdog has especially shown concern over the provisions in the draft that specifies that a child can obtain a Nepali citizenship only if both parents prove they are Nepali citizens.[break]
Issuing a statement, Elaine Pearson, deputy Asia director at HRW said, “If these provisions on citizenship are passed into law, Nepal may have a crisis of statelessness on its hands.”
Pearson underscored that it would be discriminatory if the law will not allow children with only one Nepali parent to acquire citizenship.
HRW also urged the Constituent Assembly to allow a child born to either a Nepali mother or a Nepali father to be able to claim citizenship by descent.
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