I don’t have a country. I am trying to find a country to belong to.

I don’t have a country. I am trying to find a country to belong to.

Hassan* speaks softly. We sit on the floor of the modest home he rents with his wife Noor* and children as he tells me about fleeing Myanmar over a decade ago.

We have no country, because I am Rohingya. We are born in Burma but we have no documents. No citizenship, no birth registration. No nothing.

We have no country, because I am Rohingya. We are born in Burma but we have no documents. No citizenship, no birth registration. No nothing.

Hassan is one of the many stateless people I spoke to while researching statelessness in Australia. Published today, the report, co authored by Michelle Foster, Amelia Walters and I, reveals Hassan is not alone.

Far from finding security since arriving in Australia, thousands of people in his situation continue to live in a state of legal limbo – with devastating consequences.

What does it mean to be stateless?

To be stateless means no country in the world recognises you as legally belonging.

Lack of nationality can negatively shape every aspect of a person’s life. Stateless people can struggle to access the most basic human rights, such as education, health care, and the ability to work and move freely.

The impacts on children can be especially debilitating, robbing them of their childhood and the chance to build a future.

Millions of people are estimated to be denied a nationality globally; one third are believed to be children.

Due to different citizenship laws around the world, some people are born into statelessness, while others become stateless, usually due to discrimination.

Our new report,........

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