Naharnet

Bassil to Push Ahead with Law Granting Women Right to Pass Citizenship to Children

Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil said on Wednesday that a draft law will be submitted granting Lebanese women married to foreigners the right to pass their nationality to their children, “with the exception of neighboring countries.”

At a press conference held at the Foreign Ministry, Bassil declared “an initiative for implementing equality among the Lebanese, men and women, based on the Constitution, international agreements and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW).”

Adding, “a draft law will be put forward granting women the right to confer their nationality to their children, with the exception of neighboring countries, for naturalization purposes.”

“The State of Lebanon adheres to the right of Palestinians to return back to their land, and the return of Syrian refuges back to Syria,” he said.

Bassil noted that Lebanese women married to non-Lebanese, except from neighboring countries (Syria and Palestine,) will be given the right to pass the Lebanese nationality to their children. “The constitution bans naturalization,” he argued.

The Lebanese nationality law says a Lebanese man who holds Lebanese citizenship can automatically confer citizenship to his children and foreign wife (only if entered in the Civil Acts Register in the Republic of Lebanon).

Under the current law, descendants of Lebanese emigrants can only receive citizenship from their father and women cannot pass on citizenship to their children or foreign spouses.

On 12 November 2015, the Parliament of Lebanon approved a draft law that would allow "foreigners of Lebanese origin to get citizenship", Bassil announced on 5 May 2016 the beginning of the implementation of citizenship law for Lebanese diaspora.

Source: Naharnet


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