Maravi

Dual citizenship

Dual citizenship
By Editor
Wednesday June 11, 2008 [04:00]

It is good that the proceedings of the National Constitutional Conference (NCC) are being followed closely by our people.

And Lt Gen Christon Tembo’s contribution on the resolution by the citizenship committee to allow dual-nationality should provoke some debate.
Our country means nothing unless it means the triumph of real democracy, the triumph of popular government, and, in the long run, of an economic system under which each individual shall be guaranteed the opportunity to show the best that there is in them.
The object of the government is the welfare of the people. The material progress and prosperity of a nation are desirable chiefly insofar as they lead to the moral and material welfare of all citizens.

Just in proportion as the average man and woman are honest, capable of sound judgement and high ideals, active in public affairs – but, first of all, sound in their home life, and the father and mother of healthy children who they bring up well – just so far, and no farther, we may count our endeavours a success. We must have a genuine and permanent moral awakening, without which no wisdom of legislation or administration really means anything; and, on the other hand, we must try to secure the social and economic legislation without which any improvement due to purely moral agitation is necessarily evanescent.

No matter how honest and decent we are in our private lives, if we do not have the right kind of law and the right kind of administration of the law, we cannot go forward as a nation. That is imperative; but it must be an addition to, and not a substitution for, the qualities that make up good citizens. In the last analysis, the most important elements in any person’s career must be the sum of those qualities which, in the aggregate, we speak of as character. If he has not got it, then no law that the wit of man can devise, no administration of the law by the boldest and strongest executive, will avail to help him.

We must have the right kind of character – character that makes a man, first of all, a good man in the home, a good father, a good husband – that makes a man a good neighbour. You must have that, and then, in addition, you must have the kind of law and the kind of administration of the law which will give to those qualities in the private citizens the best possible chance for development. The prime problem of our nation is to get the right type of good citizenship, and, to get it, we must have progress, and our public men must be genuinely progressive.
We are seeing some serious progressiveness in the thinking of some members of some committees of the NCC.

The resolution by the citizenship committee of the NCC to allow dual nationality is very progressive and deserves the support of all of us.

It is folly for anyone to think that the affairs of this country, including the security, are only run by people carrying the citizenship of this country, a green national registration card. There are many citizens of other countries who have lived almost all their lives here and have made great contributions to the development of our country. And if they had an opportunity to become citizens of this country in some dual way, they would have done so. There are many people who have lived almost all their lives in this country but because of other very important considerations could not apply for citizenship of this country as it would require them to renounce their other citizenship which for social and economic reasons, they may still need. Why should such people be denied dual citizenship?

Moreover, we who are privileged to have been born here should not think this territory belongs exclusively to us. This is God’s territory and we are only deployed here for a purpose – to look after this territory, its people, its resources in the best way possible on God’s behalf and indeed on behalf of all humanity. We had no choice where to be born but we do have some choice on where we can live. And let’s allow those who want to come and spend part of their lives here to do so with limited impediments.

The issues of security being advanced by Lt Gen Tembo to deny people dual citizenship to our country do not hold much water. Although citizenship is not given easily anywhere in the world, we shouldn’t make it impossible for those who want to belong to this country in one way or another to do so.

Lt Gen Tembo should know that there are about 30,000 non-citizens who serve in the United States armed forces, making up about two per cent of the active duty force. This is according to statistics from the military and the Council on Foreign Relations. And about 100 such non-citizens have been killed in Iraq and Afghanistan.

A recent change in United States law, however, gave the Pentagon authority to bring immigrants to the United States if it determines it is vital to national security.
Other nations have recruited foreign citizens: in France, the famed Foreign Legion relies on about 8,000 non-citizens; Nepalese soldiers called Gurkhas, have fought and died with British army forces for two centuries; and the Swiss Guard, which protects the Vatican, consists of troops who hail from different nations.

And the United States armed forces, already struggling to meet recruiting goals, are considering expanding the number of non-citizens in the ranks, including disputed proposals to open recruiting stations overseas and put more immigrants on a faster track to United States citizenship if they volunteer. And the Pentagon and the immigration authorities have expanded a programme that accelerates citizenship for legal residents who volunteer for the military.

So what the citizenship committee of the NCC has done is not without historical precedent.

Most Zambians who left the country to become a Diaspora did it with many reservations. The majority left because there were not enough opportunities available to them in the country. To take advantage of all the opportunity available to them while living outside of Zambia, they had to adopt the nationality of the host country. While living outside, they acquire knowledge, wealth and new skills that are essential for Zambia’s future. To deny them dual citizenship, the right to participate in the development of the country is self-defeating and short-sighted.

Denying people dual citizenship does not protect the country against an enemy. The real loser here is Zambia, as it is being denied sorely needed skills and outside experience to navigate out of the morass it is in.

The only solution to this is dual citizenship and the citizenship committee of the NCC’s resolution to this effect deserves support.

Labels: CHRISTON TEMBO, DUAL CITIZENSHIP, NCC

posted by MrK @ 4:54 AM