Colombia gives citizenship to children of Venezuelan parents

BOGOTA, Colombia — Colombia will grant citizenship to at least 24,000 children born to Venezuelan parents and at risk of statelessness.

President Ivan Duque announced Monday that in a gesture of solidarity his government will begin recognizing those born in Colombia as citizens.

Colombian law does not offer birthright citizenship to children whose parents are not legal migrants. Many of the 1.4 million Venezuelans now in Colombia entered illegally, meaning their children born in the neighboring Andean country didn’t qualify.

Children born to Venezuelan parents abroad are entitled to Venezuelan citizenship but many have been unable to access that right because of severed diplomatic ties with Colombia.

Colombia has received more Venezuelan migrants than any other nation form an unprecedented exodus.

The new measure is expected to remain in place for two years. </s> Colombia will give citizenship to more than 24,000 undocumented children of Venezuelan refugees born in the country, a rare humanitarian measure amid tightening migration policies elsewhere in the hemisphere.

“Today Colombia gives this message to the world: to those who want to use xenophobia for political goals, we take the path of fraternity,” President Iván Duque of Colombia said in a speech announcing the measure in Bogotá, the capital, on Monday.

The measure will grant a path to Colombian passports to babies born to Venezuelan parents on Colombian territory from August 2015 until August 2021, making it easier for them to access education and health care, and preventing an explosion of statelessness in Colombia.

“My baby boy will finally have a state that will take care of him,” said Katherine Fuentes, 28, a Venezuelan migrant in Bogotá who gave birth in Colombia ten months ago. “He will now be able to say proudly that he is from here, that the Colombian state accepted him.” </s> By The Associated Press

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Colombia will grant citizenship to at least 24,000 children born to Venezuelan parents and at risk of statelessness.

President Ivan Duque announced Monday that in a gesture of solidarity his government will begin recognizing those born in Colombia as citizens.

Colombian law does not offer birthright citizenship to children whose parents are not legal migrants. Many of the 1.4 million Venezuelans now in Colombia entered illegally, meaning their children born in the neighboring Andean country didn’t qualify.

Children born to Venezuelan parents abroad are entitled to Venezuelan citizenship but many have been unable to access that right because of severed diplomatic ties with Colombia.

Colombia has received more Venezuelan migrants than any other nation form an unprecedented exodus.

The new measure is expected to remain in place for two years.

Copyright © 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area. </s> Colombia has said it will grant citizenship to more than 24,000 children born in the country to parents from crisis-hit Venezuela since 2015, as well as to those who will be born over the next two years, in a move aimed at preventing them from being stateless.

These children have been stuck in legal limbo with no identity documents or proof of citizenship in any country.

There are few Venezuelan consulates abroad and travel home is often difficult and dangerous, leaving migrant parents, including many who left without a passport, with no way to register their newborns for documentation.

"Today, we are supporting these defenceless children who want to have the right to have a nationality, and we proudly tell them that they are Colombians," Colombian President Ivan Duque said on Monday.

"Colombia has shown the world that the way of xenophobia is the wrong way," he told journalists.

Venezuela is mired in one of the worst economic crises in its history, with a quarter of its 30 million population in need of aid, according to the United Nations.

More than 3.2 million Venezuelans have left the country since 2016, fleeing hyperinflation and widespread shortages of basic goods. Neighbouring Colombia has taken in the largest number: 1.3 million.

Caracas broke off diplomatic relations with Bogota in February over Duque's support for opposition leader Juan Guaido, who declared himself acting president in January. Guaido's move was a direct challenge to President Nicolas Maduro's authority, sparking a power struggle that has ground to an impasse.

Maduro said Guaido and the United States tried to stage a coup against him, while also accusing Washington of waging an economic war against his government.

Rafael Pineros, a professor of international affairs at Universidad Externado de Colombia in Bogota, said the Colombian president's move was an attempt to show that his government was part of the solution in the crisis.

"Duque wants to make clear that [the Venezuelan crisis] won't be resolved any time soon, and that despite having shown a strong position against the government of Nicolas Maduro, he is respectful towards the plight of the Venezuelan people," he told Al Jazeera.

"He wants to show that his government has the same solidarity Venezuela had with Colombia in the past."

Duque's order, which will be valid for two more years, allows children born to Venezuelan parents in Colombia from August 19, 2015, to be given citizenship. This means children up to almost four years of age can start accessing Colombia's education and health system.

The UN office in Colombia called the government's move on Monday "a milestone in the prevention of statelessness on the world level" and "a very important step" in guaranteeing "the complete protection" of the children of Venezuelan parents.

Bogota, however, has called for more international aid, saying it may soon no longer be able to cope with the influx of Venezuelans.

"The international community must not remain indifferent in the face of the ravages [caused by] the Venezuelan dictatorship," Duque said.

Foreign Minister Carlos Holmes Trujillo said on Monday Colombia had received $950,000 from UN agencies. </s> BOGOTA (Reuters) - Colombia will give citizenship to more than 24,000 children born to Venezuelan migrant parents in Colombia, to prevent the children from being stateless and less able to access education and healthcare, President Ivan Duque said on Monday.

Colombia's President Ivan Duque is seen after a news conference at the Presidential Palace in Bogota, Colombia August 5, 2019. REUTERS/Luisa Gonzalez

The measure, which will cover all Venezuelan children born in Colombia since August 2015, will be in force for two years.

More than 1.4 million Venezuelans have settled in Colombia, fleeing a long-running political and economic crisis in their homeland that has caused severe shortages of food and medicine.

Children born in Colombia to Venezuelan parents are currently stuck in legal limbo with no identity documents or proof of citizenship in any country.

There are few Venezuelan consulates abroad and travel home is difficult and dangerous, leaving many migrant parents with no way to register their newborns for documentation.

“Today we are supporting children, we are supporting these helpless little ones who want to have a right to citizenship and we’re proudly saying that they are Colombians,” Duque told journalists.

“We are going to embrace them, we are going to support them in difficult times. We are giving a ray of hope to thousands of children and families,” Duque added.

Stateless people often have trouble travelling and struggle to access public services like education and healthcare which require identity documents.

Duque, like his predecessor Juan Manuel Santos, has repeatedly urged Colombians to welcome migrants as their brethren.

The country of some 49 million has not put in place stringent immigration requirements, unlike Peru and others in the region.

Colombia’s government has urged Venezuelans who crossed the border informally to register with authorities so Colombia can better provide them with public services, without the threat of deportation. Hundreds of thousands have heeded the call. </s> Colombia’s President Ivan Duque said on Monday that his country will grant citizenship to some 24,000 children who were born from Venezuelan migrant mothers.

The measure will be retroactive and allow babies and toddlers born in the country since 2015 to be granted citizenship, a possibility that didn’t exist before.

Because Colombia does not automatically grant citizenship to babies born on its soil and Venezuela’s embassy in Bogota has no authority, the mass migration of Venezuelans led to the rapidly growing problem of stateless children.

Duque said he would issue a presidential decree that would allow the nationalization of the babies and toddlers born in Colombia since the mass migration from the neighboring country began.

The issue was publicly raised in by actress Anngelina Jolie during a visit of the ambassador of the United Nations refugee agency UNHCR in June.

Angelina Jolie stresses need to grant citizenship children of Venezuelan refugees born in Colombia

“The Colombian government has been firm in its commitment to rise to the height of ethical responsibility and offer help to the Venezuelans who feel forced to leave their country,” Felipe Muñoz, who manages the Venezuelan migrant crisis for Colombia’s migration authority, told the Washington Post.

“Let’s remember that decades ago it was they who received us Colombians in their country, when the situation was inverse and it was us fleeing difficult local conditions,” Muños added in reference to the mass migration of Colombians to Venezuela during the country’s armed conflict.

According to the UNHCR, some 4 million Venezuelans have fled their country that is suffering a major humanitarian and institutional crisis. Approximately 1.5 million of these refugees settled in Colombia.

The country has tremendous difficulty dealing with the mass migration as it has yet to deal with many of the 8 million people who were internally displaced by the armed conflict. </s> PANAMA, 6 August 2019 - UNICEF welcomes the decision of the Government of Colombia to grant Colombian nationality to more than 24,000 children born to Venezuelan parents who have been in the country since August 2015. This decision is an essential guarantor of children’s rights and will help to mitigate the risks associated with statelessness.

The exceptional and temporary administrative measure allows children born in Colombia to Venezuelan parents since August 19, 2015 to have Colombian nationality listed in their Civil Birth Registry.

“This measure sets a strong example in guaranteeing the rights of uprooted children and we salute it as a milestone in the prevention of statelessness for children worldwide,” said María Cristina Perceval, UNICEF Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean. "We encourage other countries in the region supporting children and families from Venezuela, to continue taking measures that guarantee the rights and integral protection of migrant children and their families," she added.

The Resolution of the National Registry also establishes that as of 19 August, children born in Colombia to Venezuelan parents will be registered in the Civil Registry with the Colombian nationality for a period of two year (until 2021 August).

Statelessness affects millions of people in the world. In 78 countries, about 4 million stateless persons have been identified who, having no recognition or protection from any country, are at risk of discrimination, abuse and limited access to essential services including healthcare education and civic participation.

The Convention on the Rights of the Child, ratified by Colombia in 1991, provides that ‘The child will be registered immediately after his/her birth and will be entitled since born to a name, to acquire a nationality and, as far as possible, to meet their parents and be cared for by them.’

At the request of the Government of Colombia, UNICEF is working jointly with UNHCR and IOM to support the National Registry of Civil Status to implement the new measure.

Today’s announcement moves Colombia into compliance with the Convention on the Status of Stateless Persons of 1954 and the Convention of 1961 for the reduction of statelessness cases, which establish obligations to prevent and eradicate statelessness, including the right of every child to acquire a nationality at birth. </s> Bogotá, 7th August 2019 - Save the Children welcomes the decision by the Colombian government to end the statelessness of some 24,000 children of Venezuelan parents, by granting them citizenship. The measure is an important step towards ensuring children who were born in Colombia after August 18th 2015 will have the same rights as Colombian children.

Luz Granada, Save the Children’s Advocacy Director in Colombia, said: “Stateless children are invisible for the system. They go unnoticed, their voices are seldom heard and they basically have no rights because officially, they don’t exist. For them, it’s a very real challenge to go to school, or to get the medical care that other children take for granted. That’s why this step that is now taken by the Colombian government is so crucial.

“Save the Children will continue to make sure that the rights of children are fulfilled, that is why we celebrate this measure taken by the government from Colombia. At the same time, we urge to extend its solidarity, so that migrant children can get access to quality education and certificate of studies, health, protection and other rights in the same way Colombian children can. We see this as part of the answer from the Colombian government to the dire situation of hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans that live in limbo”.

“Likewise, we call on the government and civil society to improve the conditions of children affected by the migration crisis on the border between Venezuela and Colombia, as we have been doing in Arauca, La Guajira and now in the city of Cali and the municipality of Tumaco.”
• The current measure is expected to support nearly 24,000 children who were born in the country after August 18th 2015 and the children who will continue to be born until August 2021 that were at risk of being stateless.
• According to Colombian Migration figures, as of June 2018, there were 197,428 Venezuelan children were in Colombia.
• Between January and July 2019, Save the Children has reached 20,158 children with our education, health and child protection programs across Arauca and La Guajira in Colombia. </s> BOGOTÁ, Colombia — Venezuelan migrant Wuendy Villamizar fled Venezuela by foot while seven months pregnant to ensure she gave birth in Colombia.

Her infant son was born healthy at a border hospital earlier this year but has gone without one of the most basic human rights: Citizenship.

That changed Monday when President Iván Duque announced that his government will grant citizenship to more than 24,000 babies like Santiago Josue who were born to Venezuelan parents in Colombia and are at risk of statelessness.
Colombia grants national citizenship to all children born in the country to Venezuelan parents since August 2015. The measure will be in force for two years.