Cloud Communities: The Dawn of Global Citizenship?

This kickoff contribution argues that new conceptions of global citizenship are needed today and that new digital technologies might make them viable. Blockchain technology could provide, first, every person with a unique and internationally recognized and self-sovereign legal persona that could also serve to provide individuals globally with an equal voice in international affairs. Second, blockchain technology also permits individuals or international organisations to form cloud communities in cyberspace whose aim is political decision-making and in which individuals take part in a process of governance and the creation of law

The Future of Citizenship: Global and Digital - A Rejoinder

We can construct theoretical models of digital citizenship but, as this debate has shown, there are plenty of uncertainties - political, technological, and psychological ones - before it can become actually operative. I agree with Milan that 'much work is needed … before we can proclaim the blockchain revolution.' In particular, I share the concern about global inequality generated by ideas of cloud communities due to lack of internet access (Dzankic, Ypi, Kochenov) - this gap, however, has tremendously (and rapidly) narrowed and in 104 states more than 80 per cent of the youth population (aged 15-24) are now online. The situation will further improve if a right to internet access is universally recognised. And I cannot but share Bauböck's worries about the tyranny of the majority in the cloud - addressing it is a matter of constitutional design of voting mechanisms (note, however, that there will be judicial review, decisions that require supermajority, and perhaps even veto rights in the digital world as well). Discussing these (and others) concerns will keep theorists and policy makers busy in the years to come. While the focus of this debate is on global citizenship and virtual communities, I see it as a broader invitation to reflect on the nexus between new technologies and the future of citizenship

When Is Immigration Selection Discriminatory?

Managing global migration is one of the most pressing issues of our time. Traditionally, international law has not generally regulated immigration and citizenship law; it defers to state authority in setting up rules and procedures for entry into the territory and citizenry. The lack of clear regulation - and a commonly accepted methodology on how to evaluate discriminatory borders - creates acute problems in terms of protecting human rights, promoting state interests, and setting up international cooperation. Against this background, this essay offers a legal framework to examine when borders are discriminatory. It includes a three-step process that examines the goals, criteria, and means of immigration and citizenship selection. With almost 300 million international immigrants worldwide living outside their country of origin in 2020, developing such a framework has become an urgent need

The citizen-makers: Ethical dilemmas in immigrant integration

The topic of citizen-making - turning migrants into citizens - is one of the most politically contested policy areas in Europe. Access to European citizenship is governed by national law with almost no EU regulation. The Article brings to the fore normative concerns associated with citizen-making policies in Europe (Section 2). It examines ethical dilemmas involved in the process of creating new citizens (Section 3) and promotes the adoption of a European legal framework on access to citizenship (Section 4). The overall claim is that every newcomer will be required to demonstrate, as a prerequisite for citizenship, attachments to the constitution of the specific Member State, yet the test will be functional, flexible and non-exclusive. As the topic of EU citizenship law is currently at the centre of the European agenda, this article has both theoretical significance and policy implications

How to Make the Perfect Citizen? Lessons from China\u27s Social Credit System

How to make the perfect citizen? This has been one of the questions driving the construction of the Chinese Social Credit System: a technology-driven project that aims to assess, evaluate, and steer the behavior of Chinese citizens. After presenting social credit systems in China\u27s public and private sectors (Part II), the Article provides normative standards to distinguish the Chinese system from comparable systems in liberal democracies (Part III). It then discusses the concept of civic virtue, as implemented by the Social Credit System, claiming that it creates a new form of governance, cybernetic citizenship, which fundamentally changes the essence of citizenship and the political role of the state (Part IV). On the whole, the Article demonstrates how the Chinese . Social Credit System redefines the institution of citizenship and warns against similar patterns that are mushrooming in liberal democracies