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Kathmandu Tuesday July 11, 2000 Ahsad 27, 2057.
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Citizenship amendment Bill sparks outrage
By Meena Kaini
KATHMANDU, July 10 - The sixth amendment on Citizenship
Act-1963 has raised a hornets’ nest. What was unanimously passed by the Lower House
was immediately rejected by the Upper House of the parliament. The amendment Bill,
ostensibly brought to correct the loopholes in the citizenship act can further complicate
the law and make Nepal vulnerable to migrant citizenship seekers, say analysts.
Lawmakers from the ruling Nepali Congress and the main
opposition Communist Party of Nepal (UML) seem to understand and foresee the consequences
that the Bill is likely to bring. However, they do not seem to come forward to protest the
Bill for the simple reason that their parties have taken a stand to pass the Bill.
The Bill, the first one to be adopted by the on-going session
of the parliament, was sent back by the National Assembly where a majority of the
legislators opposed the it saying that it would pose dire consequences given the huge
inflow of refugees from countries like Bhutan and migrants from India. The Bill has been
retabled in the Lower House which can again pass and sent it to the Palace for Royal
approval.
Under the new provision of the Bill, any person could acquire
a Nepali citizenship on the basis of descent and the father of the person does not
necessarily have to hold a Nepali citizenship. Before this provision, one could get
citizenship certificate only if the father held a Nepali citizenship card.
"The Bill is against the spirit of the
Constitution," says Daman Nath Dhungana, one of those persons who drafted the present
Constitution. Dhungana, however, did not further elaborate on how it was against the
spirit of the Constitution.
"The Bill was brought without debate and passed without
discussions," says a Nepali Congress MP requesting anonymity. "We cannot even
raise the issue as we have to abide by the party line. It is quite perplexing how the two
large parties support such a Bill which can have severe consequences."
Dinesh Tripathi, an advocate at the Supreme Court says that
the Bill has a provision for giving Nepali citizenship to anybody who resides in Nepal for
more than ten years and who can speak Nepali. This provision leaves enough room for
manipulation of the existing laws on citizenship . "The Bill has been brought without
thinking about its implications," says Tripathi. "Manipulation of the existing
laws becomes much easier once this Bill gets the status of law."
Ramesh Nath Pandey, MP in the Upper House points that the
provision would open the gate for any foreign national to be a Nepali citizen without
having to sacrifice their original citizenship certificate.
"What are you going to do with Bhutanese refugees who
are in Nepal since the past 10 years?" asks Pandey. "After ten years you cannot
send the children of the Bhutanese back to Bhutan because the children become Nepali
citizens legally."
He says that any country cannot be liberal when it comes to
issues of citizenship, especially a country like Nepal, which is sandwiched between two
giant neighbours with more than billion population. "State should have been careful
while formulating such Bills and actually adopting them," says Pandey.
"Unfortunately that has not happened in the present context."
"This act will only open a floodgate for non-Nepalese to
become legal citizens of Nepal," Pandey points.
Bal Krishna Neupane, an advocate at the Supreme Court who has
challenged a number of laws adopted by the House in the court says that he would challenge
the current amendment should it obtain the status of law. " If one foreign national
acquires the citizenship by fraud all those dependent on him would also get the
citizenship. That would make Nepal another Fiji," says Neupane. "I would
definitely challenge it in the Court."
Smaller parties are determined to oppose the Bill when it
comes to the House of Representatives again. The nine-left front has declared to oppose
the Bill. The Maoist mouth-piece Janadesh weekly has put forth its objection towards the
Bill, saying that it is likely to make Nepal another Sikkim.
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