9. It is worthy of mention that in the course of the comprehensive regular review and upon discussing
the report of the Kingdom concerning the human rights situation submitted in the second
round (May 2012) the report of the task force concerned with the review contained around four
recommendations entailing the necessity of making the necessary amendment to the Nationality
Law assuring for the offspring to obtain the Bahraini nationality of the mother equally with men,14
and on the other hand the Kingdom explained in the response to those recommendations that
they garner support and acceptance and that a law amending the current Nationality Law is being
drafted.15
10. It may be noted that such granting of nationality will lead to avoiding numerous problems which
the offspring of Bahraini women suffer from whether they belong to fathers of unknown nationality
or without nationality or whether they are fathers of a foreign citizenship, but due to necessitating
reasons and the imperative of family cohesion it is necessary to granting them the nationality of the
Bahraini mother.
11. Accordingly, the NIHR finds it important to amend Article (4) as stipulated in the Bahraini
Nationality Law for 1963 as amended whereby the text becomes as follows: “A person shall be
deemed a Bahraini national in the following cases: A. If he is born in Bahrain or abroad and his
father, at the time of birth, was a Bahraini national. B. If he is born in Bahrain or abroad and
his mother, at the time of birth, was a Bahraini national, providing that his father was either
unknown or not legally to be related to his father.”
اﻟﺘﻘﺮﻳﺮ اﻟﺴﻨﻮي اﻟﺜﺎﻟﺚ
ﻟﻠﻤﺆﺳﺴﺔ اﻟﻮﻃﻨﻴﺔ ﻟﺤﻘﻮق اﻧﺴﻨﺎم
اﻟﺒﺤﺮﻳﻦ
ﻣﻤﻠﻜﺔ
ـproposed
2015 ﻟﻌﺎم
12. Moreover, a new
article in the
law was
whose text is: “The offspring of a Bahraini
woman married to a foreigner are granted the Bahraini nationality once she declares such desire,
in accordance with the following restrictions and parameters: a) The mother must be a Bahraini
at the time of the birth of the son. B) The son must have a legitimate and continuous residence in
the Kingdom of Bahrain for a period of at least (10) years or (5) years in case the father is of Arab
nationality or at least one year in case the nationality of the father is that of a Gulf Cooperation
Council state. C) The written approval of the father for his minor son to obtain the Bahraini
nationality, and excepted from this condition are the sons of the divorced Bahraini woman or in
case of the death of the father or his loss of legal capability. D) It is permissible for the son once
reaching the age of maturity to retain the Bahraini nationality or to relinquish it. And in all cases,
it is permissible for the King to grant the offspring of the Bahraini woman married to a foreigner
the Bahraini nationality without being restricted by the rules stipulated in this article.”
13. Based on the foregoing, it is the view of the NIHR that the aforementioned proposed amendment
aims to achieve the principle of equality expressly stipulated in Article (18) of the Constitution, and
is consonant with the provisions of the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination
Against Women (CEDAW) to which the Kingdom acceded pursuant to Law Number (5) for the
year 2002, where the latter is considered a part of national legislation as stated by Article (37) of
the Constitution on the one hand, and is consistent with the obligations of the Kingdom before the
Human Rights Council upon the comprehensive regular overview of the human rights situation on
the other.
14
or further reading: Report of the team concerned with the comprehensive regular review- May 2012- recommendations stated in clauses
F
nos. (75-115), (95-115), (115-140), (115-142)- Document number (A/HRC/21/6) – (Enclosure).
15
For further reading: Report of the Kingdom of Bahrain concerning the final recommendation of the comprehensive regular review on
13 September 2012 (an amendment of the recommendations was performed on 12 October 2012)- Document Number (AA/HRC/21/6/
Add.1/Rev.1) (Enclosure).
49