VOLUME 4 ISSUE 1 NOVEMBER 2016​

Women and Citizenship in Sudan and South Sudan: A Comparative Analysis

Nasredeen Abdulbari
Incompatibilities between national laws, on the one hand,
and international law, human rights rules and principles of
citizenship with regard to women, their children (who are
born to a foreign father) and alien husbands, on the other,
are not uncommon in many countries in Africa and
elsewhere. This article comparatively analyses the right of
women to acquire citizenship on an equal basis to men in
Sudan and South Sudan. It touches on their equally
important right to pass on their citizenship to their alien
husbands or their children who are born to an alien father.
The article further analyses some of the detrimental
consequences of depriving women of their full citizenship
rights on their enjoyment of their rights, in addition to
particular difficulties they face in human-made or natural
disaster situations. As deprivation of citizenship is a form of
humiliation with deleterious legal, social and political
consequences on women, their children and their alien
husbands, it is necessary that Sudan takes steps to ensure
that Sudanese nationality law is compatible with the Interim
Constitution of Sudan 2005 and international law. Reform
efforts should not only be focused on laws, but should also
target outdated views and cultures.