Cancellation of citizenship and national security: a comparison between France and the UK

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In 2019 Shamima Begum, a UK-born citizen of Bangladeshi heritage who fled to Syria to participate in Jihad, was stripped of her citizenship. Soon after the UK cancelled her citizenship, Bangladesh issued a statement saying that she did not have Bangladeshi nationality and would not be allowed into Bangladesh. Begum is thus left de facto stateless, unable to return to the UK or to ask for diplomatic protection, and must conduct her appeal from the Al-Roj refugee camp in Syria where she currently resides. Although a high-profile case, Begum's is not unique. It is a pivotal moment to examine the issue of citizenship deprivation, with my doctoral thesis focusing on the key contexts of France and the UK. States are rolling back on their citizenship rights by expanding or proposing to expand citizenship deprivation on grounds of national security. The Institute on Statelessness and Inclusion (ISI) is calling 2020 the "year of action" on withdrawal of nationality. While citizenship deprivation is not a new measure and has been part of legal frameworks since at least the aftermath of the First World War, from 2014 France and the UK have drastically expanded the scope of their powers. The UK is a leading player in the practice, as it became possible in 2014 to make citizens stateless if they are naturalised citizens. For birthright citizens, more recent cases show that the UK government opted for de facto statelessness, where individuals are potentially legally entitled to acquire another citizenship, but are, in fact, left in the limbo of statelessness. In 2017, the UK issued 104 cancellation of citizenship orders. In France, there are, so far, only 14 reported cases since 2001, but citizenship deprivation was amongst the government measures introduced in response to the terrorist attacks in Paris (13th November 2015) which killed 130 individuals and injured another 413. Once reserved to naturalised citizens, multiple nationality holders, the powers of citizenship deprivation were to be expanded to birthright citizens, even if this would leave individuals at risk of statelessness. Eventually these proposals fell through following intense political debate, but recent calls have purported to emulate a similar model to that of the UK, and to extend the measure to the children of deprived subjects. The present upward trend in the use of citizenship deprivation as a counter-terrorism measure has serious implications for rights and has weakened citizenship both as a protected legal status and as a claim to equal rights. Different kinds of citizens, such as birthright and naturalised citizens, single and multiple nationality holders, are treated differently for the purposes of citizenship deprivation, and statelessness is considered a legitimate outcome to the protection of national security. My proposed plan for this fellowship period has been carefully crafted, produced in close consultation with dedicated support of the University of Bristol's Law school, the applicant's mentor and the European Network on Statelessness (ENS). During this one-year postdoctoral fellowship, I will produce publications in order to establish my track record, build networks to develop impact opportunities through consulting for the ENS and contributing to the ISI's year of action, and raise awareness around citizenship deprivation through engaging with a range of different audiences, including civil society organisations, key stakeholders and academics. I will also develop further limited postdoctoral research on emerging cases and practices of citizenship deprivation, as well as engage in further training in impact engagement and research management to improve my research and related skills. By promoting a shared and improved understanding of the nature of the complex issues linked to nationality laws, national security and statelessness, this project's collaboration and dissemination activities will offer invaluable assets to end the fate of the rightless.