Second-class citizens: naturalised citizens and the right to stand for election under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights

This thesis argues that disqualifying naturalised citizens from elected public office is incompatible with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (‘ICCPR’). That argument is developed through an interpretative analysis of the ICCPR to determine how the ICCPR should be applied to the practice of depriving naturalised citizens of the right to stand for election. In reaching its conclusions, this thesis explores more thoroughly the possible links between naturalised citizen status and the prohibited grounds of discrimination enumerated in article 2(1) of the ICCPR than previous literature. It also takes into account possible bases on which a state party to the ICCPR might attempt to justify disqualifying naturalised citizens, and assesses those bases against the requirements of reasonableness, objectivity and legitimacy of purpose. Based on the research presented in this thesis, there is a case that disqualifying naturalised citizens from elected public office is discriminatory or at least an unreasonable restriction on the electoral rights guaranteed by article 25 of the ICCPR. This thesis indicates that state parties engaging in the practice should amend their eligibility criteria for elected public office to remove distinctions between those who acquired citizenship by naturalisation and those who acquired it by birth. Though this is not an entirely novel argument, this thesis is a marked improvement on the depth of literature on the rights of naturalised citizens under international law.