IDRC Research Chair, Nyi Nyi Kyaw, recently presented his paper titled “Migration, Citizenship, and Identity Documentation: Citizenship and Pseudo/Partial Citizenship of Myanmar Migrants in Thailand” at the Migration and Citizenship Pathways in Asia conference. This conference, hosted by the Asia Research Institute at the National University of Singapore, aims to expand the conceptualization of migration and citizenship pathways, particularly concerning immigrants, diasporic citizens, and migrants of different generations.
Traditionally, possession of a valid passport serves as sufficient proof of citizenship for migrants when they are outside their country of origin. However, for Myanmar migrants in Thailand, acceptable citizenship documentation includes not only passports but also temporary passports, certificates of identity, national IDs, and household registration lists. While passports and national IDs offer permanent or complete proof of legal identity and citizenship for Myanmar migrants, the other forms may be considered lesser forms of such proof.
Navigating between their documented or undocumented belonging to their country of origin and their documented or undocumented existence in the host country presents challenges for many of the approximately four million Myanmar migrants in Thailand. They often encounter bureaucratic, arbitrary, and discriminatory citizenship and pseudo or partial citizenship documentation policies and practices by Myanmar authorities. These policies hinder their ability to meet Thailand’s migrant identification requirements.
In an effort to elucidate the legal uncertainty faced by Myanmar migrant workers in Thailand who are partially or inadequately documented, Nyi Nyi Kyaw introduced the concept of pseudo/partial citizenship documentation. He proposed this novel concept by employing a combined textual and contextual analysis of Myanmar citizenship and pseudo/partial citizenship documentation policies and practices intended for Myanmar migrant workers in Thailand.
For the textual analysis, Kyaw referred to publications regarding citizenship or identity documentation by the Ministry of Immigration and Population and the Ministry of Labour of Myanmar. To explore the contextual and lived experiences, Kyaw plans to conduct interviews with labour rights activists and Myanmar migrant workers in Thailand. Through this comprehensive approach, Kyaw aims to shed light on the complex dynamics surrounding citizenship documentation for Myanmar migrants in Thailand.