Short-Term Scientific Mission Blog: Field Notes

Action number: CA21120

Grantee name: Aleksejs Ivashuk

Details of the STSM:

Title: Apatride Network<->University of Navarra: Statelessness Guest Lectures and Knowledge Exchange

Start and end date: 08/09/2024 to 15/09/2024

Home Country: Switzerland

Host Country: Spain

The Founder of stateless-led coalition Apatride Network, Aleksejs Ivashuk, visited University of Navarra, providing guest lectures to various departments on the history of mass statelessness in Europe. The guest lectures raised awareness on the overlooked human rights topic, engaging students to critically think and consider various aspects that pertain to it. The STSM was kindly and expertly hosted by Ana Belén Martínez García, fellow HIDDEN member and Associate Professor of English Literature and Business Communication at the ISSA School of Applied Management, University of Navarra.

Each guest lecture provided by Aleksejs Ivashuk had a different theme. The themes covered included: general introduction to statelessness, case study of the largest stateless group in Europe, lecture focused on the reasons why the topic of statelessness is poorly known (open to all departments), and what statelessness means for personal and educational development. 

Throughout the lectures, emphasis was made on the intersectionality of statelessness with other human rights issues, such as child rights, women rights, minority rights—highlighting discrimination and racism as a central cause of statelessness and its continued existence. Centrally, misconceptions about statelessness were dispelled. To that end, the development of statelessness as a legal concept helped explain many of the misconceptions about it, such as in the confusion between the terms of ‘refugee’ and ‘stateless’, as well as still present European incredulity in recognising statelessness within own borders.  Special attention was paid to the harsh history of mass statelessness in Europe, discussing such examples as Germany, Belarus, Greece, Netherlands, Italy, Spain, France, Cyprus, Norway, Ukraine, Russia, Turkey, the Baltic and the Balkan countries. All of these countries have caused and maintained mass statelessness in the last century, yet few Europeans are aware of it. Colonization was also mentioned on a number of occasions. For European countries in Western and Central Europe statelessness is closely intertwined with colonialism.

During one of the lectures a game was played with the audience about whether they recognise any of the above-pictured famous Europeans who experienced statelessness in one form or another.

At every lecture, there was very positive and engaging interaction between the guest lecturer and the audience. Students and faculty asked thought provoking questions that built well on the given presentation. Questions asked focused on the daily realities that stateless people faced, on international law and its shortcomings, legal identification intricacies, and potential solutions that can be realised. The audience were encouraged to take home the topic, do their own research, and help spread awareness of the overlooked human rights issue.

The benefit of the STSM was not only in raising awareness of statelessness, more broadly it was about the importance of civil society membership: those in power are able to more easily avoid accountability in abusing power when there is poor visibility over critical matters like statelessness. Aleksejs Ivashuk concluded his lectures emphasizing the point of how each of us has an important role to play in civil society, at the very least in being aware of its systemic shortcomings and troubles. This assures of better governance, respect and realisation of the values that we are supposed to share and defend, such as the value of justice, democracy, equality, and respect for the rule of law. These values do not exist in a vacuum: we are all bearers of these values and serve as their defenders. The very fact that statelessness exists is very much a failure that we share in common.