Isis Briton Shamima Begum faces move to revoke citizenship

[Eugene]

Source: The Guardian

Isis Briton Shamima Begum faces move to revoke citizenship

Family ‘disappointed’ at Home Office decision and considering legal position, says lawyer

Kevin Rawlinson
Tue 19 Feb 2019 18.55 GMT Last modified on Tue 19 Feb 2019 19.53 GMT

The family of a teenager who travelled to Syria to join Islamic State has been told the Home Office intends to revoke her British citizenship, according to their lawyer.

Shamima Begum, who left her home in Bethnal Green, east London, at the age of 15, is in a refugee camp in Syria, where she gave birth to a boy at the weekend.

Begum, now 19, had called on the British people to have sympathy for her and asked to be allowed to return to the UK. The home secretary, Sajid Javid, responded by insisting he would do all in his power to prevent her coming back.

On Tuesday, Tasnime Akunjee, the family’s lawyer, said Begum’s relatives were “very disappointed with the Home Office’s intention to have an order made depriving Shamima of her citizenship”. He said they were “considering all legal avenues to challenge this decision”.

-snip-

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/feb/19/isis-briton-shamima-begum-to-have-uk-citizenship-revoked

[Soph0571]

1. Don't see how they can do it legally

[muriel_volestrangler]

6. This may not have been in the article earlier:

While the Home Office has not commented, the Guardian understands the home secretary believes section 40(2) of the British Nationality Act 1981 gives him the power to strip Begum of her UK citizenship.

He has made an order and believes the fact Begum’s parents are of Bangladeshi heritage means she can apply for citizenship of that country, which she says she has never visited.

This is crucial because, while the law bars him from making a person stateless, it allows him to remove citizenship if he can show Begum has behaved “in a manner which is seriously prejudicial to the vital interests of the United Kingdom” and he “has reasonable grounds for believing that the person is able, under the law of a country or territory outside the United Kingdom, to become a national of such a country or territory”.

I'd imagine they'll try to challenge that in court, but it may hold up.

[muriel_volestrangler]

7. Given the Bangladeshi reaction, international law on this looks like

"you're it, and no returns!", or "bagsy not get the Islamist!"

https://www.democraticunderground.com/108815313

[mwooldri]

8. If a person has dual citizenship the Home Secretary can do it legally.

English law does not allow a Brit to become stateless.

The girl has possible routes to citizenship through her mother (Bangladesh) and her husband (Dutch). However if she cannot secure Dutch or Bangladeshi citizenship she is thus stateless and there is enough legal precedent for her to get her British citizenship reinstated legally.

[ProudMNDemocrat]

2. The British are as stern about Treason as Americans are......

When a citizen leaves their country of birth to join a terrorist enemy, then wants back in said country, that person faces an uphill battle. 5o give aid and comfort, then sleep with an enemy, makes that person a TRAITOR.

This is an issue for the British government to work out. Had it been an American, like with the American Taliban fighter from 2002, I would say, prison for life.

[woodsprite]

3. She knew what they were when she left to live with them, right?

IMO, she cut her ties with her home country at that time.

[Denzil_DC]

4. Well, she was 15 at that point.

On the scale of stupid things teenagers have done (even me), it certainly ranks right up there.

I can't see how rendering her (and presumably her baby) stateless is going to hold up legally, though.

[delisen]

5. Will UK revoke Tony Blair's citizenship for lying them into war, killing thousands

The good old old boy network --cast out girls who got duped at 15 and protect rich old men.

Maybe they deserve Brexit.

Zero tolerance for 19 year old mother of 2 dead children and gloss over the sins of the rich man.