Dual citizenship to be allowed in Norway
Dual citizenship to be allowed in Norway
Parliament will adopt a legislative amendment on Thursday that will allow both Norwegian and another citizenship. Only Arbeiderpartiet (Ap) and Senterpartiet are against it.
“I think this is a joyous day. The law is from 1888. It is ripe for revision and must be adapted to the time we live in,’’ said parliamentary representative, Ove Trellevik of Høyre (H).
On Thursday, parliament is processing and adopting the amendment, which makes it possible to be, for example, Norwegian and a citizen of the USA at the same time.
Trellevik thinks there are many Norwegians who look forward to this.”There are very many Norwegian citizens who have emigrated, but who have strong ties with the country, who have children or parents here. When they move out and get citizenship outside, they automatically lose Norwegian citizenship,” he said.
The Government also proposed, however, that it should be possible to deprive persons who have committed criminal acts of Norwegian citizenship. It can only be done if the person also has another citizenship, as the authorities can not make people stateless, according to human rights laws.
This has prompted lawyers to respond. Such a scheme will mean that people are treated differently according to the law, depending on whether they have one or two citizenships the Legal Policy Association pointed out in their consultation response.
“It’s preventative if you have two citizenship and you risk losing the Norwegian. I think it’s worth it,’’ said Trellevik.
The Arbeiderpartiet and the Senter Parti oppose the introduction of dual citizenship because they believe it will weaken the possibility of combating forced marriages and the practice of sending children out of the country to “raise them”.
Trellevik looks at it differently.
“It may be easier to follow up such cases because they are Norwegian citizens too. Then we have a legitimate right to enter into dialogue with other countries’ authorities about Norwegian citizens,” he said.
Loyalty conflict?
SenterParti leader, Trygve Slagsvold Vedum, also questioned the loyalty of a person who has two citizenships.
“If Norway is in conflict with another country, will a citizen in both countries think only Norwegian interests matter when the person in question votes, in a Norwegian election?” he asked in a post in Dagbladet newspaper on November the 23rd.
He indicated that the National Security Authority (NSM) has also warned about this.
“You can turn it over. Should you choose citizenship, you may be frustrated by it. However, if you accept that you are allowed to have two citizenships, it is much easier to settle for it. This way, it will be conflict-reducing,’’ Trellevik believes.
Can get the passport back
With the amendment, people who have previously had to renounce Norwegian citizenship can apply for a return. However, persons who have been sentenced to imprisonment in Norway or abroad will not be able to get the citizenship back.
Before the law can come into force, Norway must wholly or partially terminate the Council of Europe Convention of the 6th of May 1963, which states that Norwegian citizens will lose their citizenship if they get a new one.
The legislative amendments may not enter into force until one year after the Council of Europe has received notification of Norway’s termination, the Ministry of Education, which is responsible for the matter, informed NTB news.
© NTB scanpix / #Norway Today
