Malé, Maldives – The Government of Maldives gazetted the Regulation for the registration of children born to Maldivian citizens in war zones (Regulation no. G-1/2022) detailing the protocol to register children born in war zones as Maldivian citizens.
As per the regulation, a child born to Maldivian citizens at a foreign war zone may be registered as a Maldivian citizen only after,
- The case is submitted to a Maldivian court under Article 60-5 of the Prevention of Terrorism Act (No. 32/2015) and the court grants approval for citizenship.
- The child’s guardian or an individual with power of attorney must submit an application for a birth certificate within 4 days of judgement by the courts with court statements.
- Councils are to register the children upon verification of the applications.
The
Regulation for the registration of children born to Maldivian citizens in war zones (Regulation no. G-1/2022) is established effective today under the the third amendment to the Prevention of Terrorism Act (Law No. 32/2015) ratified by President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih on 29 November 2021.
This amendment mandates the children of fighters and others who were born in conflict zones to be registered before their return, if their birth had not been registered previously according to the Maldives laws. The act also details the special measures that are put in place to help safeguard the welfare of the children.
