The National Human Rights Commission, NHRC, has advised the Federal Government to urgently address issues of displaced persons in the northern part of the country as more Nigerians are becoming stateless.
The Executive Secretary of the National Human Rights Commission, Professor Ben Angwe, who spoke at a forum in Abuja, decried the increasing case of statelessness, saying some Nigerians who fled the country as a result of the activities of insurgents have become stateless due to their inability to identify themselves as Nigerians.
After a presentation on the concept, causes and consequences of statelessness, Professor Angwe declared that statelessness is a human rights issue which the Commission will continue to protect at all times.
He advised government to ensure the proper registration of all births and deaths as a means of keeping adequate record of all Nigerians both dead and alive.
The representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Angele Dibonque-Atangana, stressed the need for governments across the globe to work towards addressing the causes of statelessness.
She announced measures being taken by the Commission to stem the tide of statelessness.
The one day forum on statelessness was aimed at creating an awareness on the increasing number of stateless persons as some internally displaced persons have become refugees in other countries just as some refugees have become stateless persons.