THE ENIGMA OF NATIONALITY

As if being national were more important than being human...

I've mentioned the fact that I had to adopt my own children in order to give them dual nationality... Which reminds me, I have to write a post on that...

In a nation historically leery of immigration, yet with a steadily declining population:

Japan set to give nationality to illegitimate children

"Japan is set to reform its nationality law to recognise children born out of wedlock to foreign mothers after a benchmark Supreme Court ruling last month, a report said on Sunday.

The justice ministry drafted the amendment so as to give Japanese nationality to children born to foreign mothers without consideration to their parents' marital status...

Japan, which largely regards itself as ethnically homogeneous, bases nationality on blood ties. It has rejected the idea of large-scale immigration even though it has one of the world's lowest birthrates.

In Japan, nationality was traditionally passed down through the paternal line, with a child obtaining Japanese citizenship only if his or her father was Japanese."