Olivier Vonk

Dual Nationality in the European Union

The book analyzes the role of dual nationality in different fields of the law, in particular national and EU law, and offers a convincing argument for the (minimum) harmonization of European nationality laws.

Nationality, Statelessness and ECHR’s Article 8: Comments on Genovese v. Malta

Abstract This article analyses the landmark European Court of Human Rights case of Genovese v. Malta, which made an invaluable contribution to the field of nationality law. For the first time the European Court clearly ruled that (access to) nationality falls under the scope of protection of the ECHR as part of a person’s social identity, which in turn is part of that person’s private life. In this article, the authors analyse the case itself as well as its consequences for the nationality laws of several European countries.

Nationality Law in the Western Hemisphere

In Nationality Law in the Western Hemisphere , Olivier Vonk provides the first comprehensive overview in English of the current grounds for acquisition and loss of citizenship of all thirty-five countries in the Americas and the Caribbean.

Towards a sporting nationality

Introducing a ‘sporting nationality’ that is completely independent of the standard legal nationality linking individuals to a state is neither feasible nor desirable, as the term nationality and its connotations are broader than the mere sporting context. Since the literature on sport law (lex sportiva) is not clear about the differences and similarities between sporting nationality and standard legal nationality, the concept of sporting nationality remains vague. This article argues that nationality should remain the underlying tie between athletes and their country of representation. Instead of introducing a sporting nationality, the recommendation is to establish a uniform set of rules that provides athletes with a ‘sporting license’ of the country of which they are nationals. This avoids confusion as to whether a sporting nationality entails some of the rights and duties traditionally linked to the concept of nationality.

Benchmarking the protection against statelessness in Europe: comparative findings

This contribution presents the comparative findings of the ‘Protection against Statelessness Database’, developed by the European Union Democracy Observatory on Citizenship in collaboration with UNHCR. Using the most important international standards as a benchmark, the database provides a normative assessment of the extent to which citizenship laws in 36 European states provide sufficient protection against statelessness. While Section 2 explains the methodology developed by the Observatory in collaboration with UNHCR, and in particular the 17 ‘modes of protection against statelessness’ that have been devised, Section 3 draws some comparative conclusions. This is based on a fourfold distinction – that is, whether the countries provide more protection than required by the standards; act in line with the standards; provide a limited safeguard against statelessness; or provide no safeguard at all. Concluding that a serious attempt is generally made to avoid cases of statelessness from arising, the contribution also feels there is room for improvement.

Non-Sovereign Caribbean Territories that Belong to Britain, France, the Netherlands, or the United States

This chapter analyses non-sovereign Caribbean territories that currently belong to Britain, France, the Netherlands or the United States. The non-sovereign Caribbean territories in fact outnumber the sovereign ones. Britains aim from the very beginning was the full transfer of sovereignty to the newly independent states, a process that started in the 1960s. The United States arrived as a new player in the region around the turn of the twentieth century, permanently incorporating Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands for geopolitical reasons relating to the Cold War, and temporarily occupying Cuba, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic. France hung on to its colonies, even though they were of little economic value, to retain its role in international politics as well as to preserve some of its grandeur. The Netherlands saw Surinam become independent in 1975 but kept its overseas possessions in the Caribbean, be it under all kinds of different political arrangements.Keywords: Britain; France; Netherlands; non-sovereign Caribbean territories; United States

Key Observations from the Nationality Law-related Case Law of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights

The European Convention on Nationality (ECN) deals with the matter of nationality in greater detail than the 1969 American Convention on Human Rights (AmCHR). Despite the existence of the ECN, a substantial body of case law on nationality by regional courts is lacking in Europe. Against that background it is surprising that not many nationality-related decisions have been handed down either by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. Dilcia Oliven Yean and Violeta Bosico Cofi, born in 1996 and 1985 respectively to Dominican mothers, had been denied birth certificates by the Registry Office in spite of the fact that they were born in the Dominican Republic and that Dominican law establishes the principle of ius soli acquisition. The Court summarized the application submitted to it by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.Keywords: American Convention on Human Rights (AmCHR); European Convention on Nationality (ECN); Inter-American Court of Human Rights

Doppia cittadinanza e cittadinanza duale: normative degli Stati membri e cittadinanza europea

Premessa.1. Il fenomeno della doppia cittadinanza.2. La cittadinanza duale europea.3. La doppia cittadinanza in tre contesti storico - costituzionali.- 3.1. Il contesto post-coloniale.- 3.2. Il contesto post-emigratorio.- 3.3. Il contesto post-comunista.4. La giurisprudenza della Corte di giustizia europea in materia di doppia cittadinanza.- 4.1. Il caso Micheletti.- 4.2. Il caso Zhu and Chen.5. Verso una autonomia giuridica della cittadinanza dell’UE?