Statelessness of Rohingyas and their right to Bangladeshi citizenship

Abstract

Since the outbreak of violence and persecution against Rohingyas in 2017 they have been fleeing Myanmar and taking refuge in Bangladesh. A significant number of them are married to a Bangladeshi citizen and their children are entitled to Bangladeshi citizenship by descent. However, these Rohingyas are not registered as Bangladeshi citizens. As a result, a significant number of Rohingyas and their children have become stateless. As Bangladesh is not a party to the statelessness conventions, the issues surrounding the statelessness of these Rohingyas can hardly be addressed under these conventions. This article explores the citizenship rights of these Rohingyas outside of these conventions. It argues that, although Bangladesh is not a party to the statelessness conventions it is a party to the Convention on the Rights of the Child and other international human rights treaties under which it is obliged to grant citizenship status to the Rohingyas who are married to a Bangladeshi citizen or born to a Bangladeshi parent