5.3

5.3.1
Past Citizenship Laws

PREVIEW

What do you know about Myanmar’s past citizenship laws?

The Constitution of the Union of Burma of 1947 did not allow a person to have legal citizenship status in multiple countries. The 1947 Constitution only recognised one category of legal citizenship and recognised legal citizenship of anyone:

• born to parents who belonged to “indigenous races of Burma”;
• born in the territory of Burma who had at least one grandparent who belonged to any of the “indigenous races of Burma”;
• born in the territory of Burma and whose both parents were legal citizens of Burma;
• who had resided within the territory of Burma for a certain period of time before the 1947 Constitution was adopted, had been born in any territory under control by the British colonial power and intended to permanently reside in Burma.

The newly-formed Parliament was also allowed to create additional citizenship laws. The 1947 Constitution did not define which ethnic or other groups were classified as taingyintha.

The Union Citizenship Act of 1948 was the first citizenship law after independence. It did not allow a person to have legal citizenship status in multiple countries. Only one category of legal citizenship was recognised in this law. It specified “indigenous races of Burma” to mean “Arakanese, Burmese, Chin, Kachin, Karen, Kayah, Mon or Shan” and any other group who had settled in any of the territories of Burma before 1823. The NRCs that legal citizens were given did not specify the holder’s ethnicity or religion.

The Union Citizenship Act of 1948 recognised legal citizens who were already recognised as legal citizens under the 1947 Constitution. It also included several criteria for individuals to be a legal citizen:

• Individuals who fulfilled the following three criteria were automatically legal citizens:
• the person resided in Burma and had been born in Burma;
• their parents were born in Burma and had made Burma their permanent home;
• their grandparents had made Burma their permanent home.

Children born after 1948 within the territory of Burma who had one parent who was a legal citizen were automatically legal citizens. Children born outside of Burma could become legal citizens of Burma depending on the legal citizenship status and employment of their parents.

The Union Citizenship Act of 1948 included different opportunities for accessing naturalisation under certain criteria for the following groups of people:

a person who was above the age of 18 years, had resided in Burma for at least five years, could speak one of the “national languages” and had a “good character”;

• a woman who had married a legal citizen of Burma and resided in Burma for at least one year;
• a child born inside Burma to parents who were both residents but not legal citizens;
• a child born outside of Burma to parents of whom at least one was a legal citizen of Burma;
• a person who had served in the Armed Forces of the Union for a total of three years.

The Constitution of the Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma of 1974 did not allow a person to have legal citizenship status in multiple countries. Only one category of legal citizenship was recognised in this law.

The 1974 Constitution confirmed that people who held a legal citizenship status according to laws that existed at the date of the adoption of the constitution were recognised as legal citizens. The 1974 Constitution also stated that anyone born to both parents who were “nationals” were considered legal citizens. However, the 1974 Constitution did not define which ethnic or other groups were classified as “national”.

The 1974 Constitution recognised naturalisation as a way to access citizenship; however, the constitution did not explain any details of naturalisation processes but instead stated that naturalisation should happen “as prescribed by law”.

REFLECTION/DISCUSSION

1. Which do you believe is more inclusive, the Union Citizenship Act of 1948 or the Burma Citizenship Law of 1982? Are there any people who are legal citizens under one law but not the other?
2. Are there any aspects of the 1947 Constitution, the Union Citizenship Act of 1948 or the 1974 Constitution that you believe could be reintroduced in laws to improve the way legal citizenship status exists today in Myanmar? If yes, which aspects?