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Dual citizenship: Many Lankan families trapped in legal vacuum
Each time seven-year-old Shanara arrives at the Bandaranaike International Airport, she is the only one in her family of six who must show a visa to enter the country of her parents’ birth. Like many other children in her predicament, the girl was born during a four-year period when the Mahinda Rajapaksa administration had stopped granting dual citizenships to Sri Lankans holding foreign nationalities. So her parents were British at the time of her birth.
In March 2015, the suspension of dual citizenship was lifted. Shanara’s parents, Roshika Ranasinghe and Yohan David, applied for and obtained Sri Lankan passports in addition to their British ones. Their three older sons, who were born before the parents became British, also have two nationalities.
But Shanara is trapped in a legal vacuum. Under Sri Lankan law, a person born outside the country will be deemed to be a citizen only if, at the time of birth, his or her mother or father is a citizen of Sri Lanka. At least one parent should be Sri Lankan.
Roshika and her husband were born and raised here. While working in England on their Sri Lankan passports, they had three of their children. And, as offspring of Sri Lankan parents, the boys qualified for Sri Lankan as well as British citizenship (Britain, like Sri Lanka, allows dual status).
Then Roshika, a doctor, and Yohan, an engineer, met the criteria for and obtained British citizenship. “Our daughter was born in 2011 in Singapore to two British parents as dual citizenship was on hold in Sri Lanka,” she said. “When it was restored, five of us were eligible. Our daughter was not.”
Umar Azeer’s brother (who did not wish to be quoted) is in a similar situation. “He and his wife became eligible for British citizenship while dual status was suspended in Sri Lanka,” Umar said, on behalf of his sibling. “There wasn’t even a hint of when it would be restored so they did not know how long they would have to wait.”
To stay on as Sri Lankans, Umar’s brother and wife would have had to fork out a large amount each year for their British visas. “And the visa conditions kept changing so they were neither here nor there,” he said. “Therefore, they got British citizenship, hoping to apply for Sri Lankan passports one day.”
Today, both are dual citizens but their children–born between 2011 and 2015–are not. And they were turned down again as recently as a week ago. “He is a doctor and would like to give back to the local community,” Umar said. “But he needs visas for his kids to visit and they only get four weeks at a time after which they have to extend.”
It is not known how many children are similarly affected. The Department of Immigration and Emigration is aware of the problem, said the Deputy Controller (Citizenship). The advice of the Attorney General’s Department has been sought and a recommendation is expected.
In 2015, a total of 816 dual citizenships were issued by the Department. This rose to 2,538 the following year while the number was 2,598 in 2017.
But Immigration officials also pointed out that dual citizenship is a privilege, not a right. “When you are born to Sri Lankan parents, citizenship is an inherent right,” said M L D Niroshana, Deputy Commissioner/Controller (Policy and Development). “Dual citizenship is a different status. Any Government can take a policy decision to suspend it.”
“At least one of the parents must be a Sri Lankan citizen, dual or otherwise, for an offspring to qualify for citizenship,” he continued. “If this is not the case, the child is considered to be the offspring of a foreigner and does not have the right to Sri Lankan citizenship.”
The issue at hand, however, is different. And it is one that causes real practical difficulties for the families concerned. It isn’t only that some members need visas while others don’t. This is stopping educated Sri Lankans from returning home and giving back.
A banker resident in Singapore (he did not wish to be named) whose son is not entitled to citizenship said the boy even had sufficient points to enter a prominent national school in Colombo but that his status prevented it. This was keeping the family from resettling here.
Their son was born in England in 2011. The parents were British at the time and had applied for dual nationality but could not get it because it was suspended in Sri Lanka. The Sri Lankan High Commission in London refused to register the baby’s birth as there was no legal avenue to do so.
“We found that there is no provision for the situation of my son because, technically, we were not Sri Lankan at the point of his birth,” he continued. They subsequently had a daughter who, like her parents now, has dual nationality.
“I left Sri Lanka in 2001 to study in England,” he said. “I shifted to Singapore five years ago because it’s the closest I can be, physically, without being home. I want to come back and contribute to the country. I would be happy to bring my savings and set up something here. But I can’t because of this situation. My son will probably need a student visa or something like that. And it makes things complicated.”
Nothing can be done at their level, Immigration Department officials said. A policy change is needed and, possibly, legal respite. The children of foreigners clearly do not have the right to citizenship under prevailing legislation.
Even these children do have the option of gaining Sri Lankan citizenship when they are 18, by proving descent. But that is a long time to wait for their families.