Submissions and Briefing Notes
Briefing Notes
Rohingya citizenship status in post-coup Myanmar
Published 8 May 2026
The Rohingya are often referred to as the world’s largest stateless population. It is well documented that Rohingya have faced significant human rights abuses and protracted displacement over recent decades whilst also having no rights to Myanmar citizenship. Nearly 80% of Rohingya, estimated to total 2.8 million worldwide, now live outside Myanmar.
There has been scant research focused on the context for Rohingya since the 2021 coup in Myanmar. To help fill this gap, these two briefing notes look both backwards and forwards in an effort to understand the struggles, current political dynamics, and possibilities for Rohingya, and their citizenship, in a future Myanmar.
The paper "Unmaking Rohingya Statelessness" by Dr Matt Schissler takes up the question of how the Rohingya have been made stateless, and particularly how this has hinged on the way citizenship by birth is available only to those who the state recognises as one of Myanmar’s “national races” (taing yin thar).
Briefing note: "Unmaking Rohingya Statelessness"
The second paper "Rakhine's Changing Political Order and the Future of Rohingya Citizenship" by Sophia Htwe examines the evolving political landscape in Myanmar's Rakhine State following the 2021 military coup and the consolidation of de facto authority by the Arakan Army (AA). A version of this briefing paper with policy recommendations has also been published by ANU as a Policy Brief presented to DFAT on 8 May 2026.
Briefing note: "Rakhine's Changing Political Order and the Future of Rohingya Citizenship"
These briefing papers were made possible with the support of the Myanmar Research Network at the University of Melbourne and the Myanmar Research Centre at the Australian National University.
Malaysia's proposed amendments to citizenship provisions in its Federal Constitution
Published 17 October 2023
If passed into law, most of the recent amendments proposed by the Malaysian Government to citizenship provisions in Malaysia’s Federal Constitution will have a deleterious impact in terms of reducing the number of cases of statelessness in the country and from preventing new cases from arising. On the contrary, statelessness (particularly cases of statelessness amongst children and intergenerational statelessness) is likely to increase. Childhood statelessness can significantly stunt a child’s development: lack of citizenship typically means that children cannot access basic services, including education and healthcare, increases their exposure to harmful and exploitative practices such as trafficking or indefinite detention, and severely curtails their future employment prospects and prosperity.
Citizenship (Amendment) Act 2019 and International Law
Published 1 April 2021
A Legal Brief prepared by the Peter McMullin Centre on Statelessness, the Asian Law Centre, and the Institute for International Law and the Humanities.
This legal brief considers the Citizenship (Amendment) Act 2019 (‘CAA’) and its compliance with India’s international legal obligations. India’s treaty and customary obligations are outlined, with a primary focus on the conflict between the CAA and the principles of non-discrimination and the prohibition on arbitrary deprivation of nationality.
Citizenship, Constitutionalism and Civil Liberties - A Briefing Note on Recent Developments in India
Published 17 July 2020
Revised 4 August 2020
Indian Citizenship and Statelessness Research Project Briefing Note prepared by the Peter McMullin Centre on Statelessness and the Asian Law Centre.
India’s Constitution commits it to democracy, equality, secularism, asymmetrical federalism and the protection of civil liberties, including freedom of speech and religious freedom. Nevertheless, each of these commitments is now under threat from authoritarian nationalism.
This note offers a brief summary of developments in India, primarily over 2019-2020, relating to (I) risks of statelessness and (II) authoritarian nationalism.