Deepak was three when his father abandoned him and his mother. At nine years old, he lost his mother and with no one to go to, he was forced to take refuge in the streets of Lalitpur. The streets were not kind to the young boy as he faced numerous challenges.
Gaining employment proved to be a struggle, as people did not trust him. This frustration eventually led him to become involved with drugs. While a shelter home did offer him a place to stay at the age of 10, he was always aware that it was only a temporary arrangement.
These shelter homes serve as the primary residences for many street children. The street children, however, understand that one day they must get back into the wider world. After getting out of of home, Deepak returned to the streets at the age of 11, resuming the same way of life he had known before.
Unlike the streets, shelter homes have specific rules and regulations that must be adhered to. Deepak did not wish to be constrained by any kind of rules; he desired to experience the same level of freedom he had on the streets. As a result, he chose to leave the shelter home.
By the time he reached his teens, Deepak understood the urgency of earning money to sustain himself. Trained with vocational skills, he began actively searching for jobs. However, as he was looking for one, he faced a significant obstacle—he was required to provide proof of his citizenship.
“I did not have it. No one told me I needed that to get a job or get anything done. When I found out, I understood how tough it was to get one,” says Deepak.
Now 28, with no citizenship, Deepak has not been able to get a stable job nor has he been able to open a bank account. With no birth certificates and both his parents no longer in his life, he still does not know how he will get one.
In cases where a child is orphaned or lacks legal documentation of their parents, they have the option to obtain birth certificates through verification by ward officials. Another route is to obtain a recommendation from a government-recognised orphanage. But, Deepak’s time in shelter homes was brief, and people became familiar with him only in his adulthood. That meant, there was no one who could advocate for him in obtaining a birth certificate.
This has meant, that even at 28, Deepak has not been able to obtain citizenship. He is not alone in this struggle. Many street children, like Deepak, face the same issue—lacking citizenship or a birth certificate. They are unsure about the steps to take to get one, and with their nomadic lifestyle, they do not have a stable source of support to guide them in the process of obtaining a birth certificate and citizenship.
No support system
According to Kabita Shah, a resource executive at SathSath, an organisation working for the rights of children and youth, street children exhibit a high degree of mobility and possess the freedom to relocate at will. This constant movement from one place to another contributes to their lack of recognition by local wards or any government entity.
“They also keep moving because of the conflicts and interference from specific individuals in the local communities,” says Shah.
Like Deepak, 28-year-old Raju is also going through the same problem. Raju recalls aimlessly wandering the streets of Kalanki. He has no information about his parents. During his childhood, he worked at a shop. It was there where he got his name. Like Deepak, Raju also took refuge in different shelter homes.
Now married and with a young son, Raju has been looking for stable jobs. But he has realised it is not going to be easy to get one as he does not have citizenship.
This came as a shock to him. No citizenship became a major hurdle in securing a job. Additionally, when he tried to find a place to rent, his appearance led to reluctance from the landlords. Some even demanded proof of his citizenship.
“I didn’t want my son to experience the same life as mine, so I began searching for a stable job and a place to rent. Unfortunately, the absence of proper legal documents became a significant roadblock,” says Raju. “This situation has left me deeply concerned about my son’s future.”
Raju, like Deepak, did not stay in government-registered orphanages or shelters not a long duration. Now he finds himself without the support needed to obtain a birth certificate or other essential legal documents.
No identity, no future
Ten-year-old Rupak has other issues. With no birth certificate, Rupak’s educational prospects hang in the balance. Rupak lives with his parents in Pashupatinath Temple. They have been staying there for a number of years but none of them have any form of legal documents.
Wanting their son to have a better life compared to them, his parents have done everything they can to send him to school. But now they are worried about his future education, which necessitates legal documents like a birth certificate and citizenship.
Due to the high number of Indian residents in the Pashupati area, the local authorities are hesitant to issue a birth certificate for Rupak. This reluctance stems from the absence of documentation that verifies his Nepali citizenship.
According to a survey conducted by SathSath in 2022, there are 105 people who have been denied birth certificates due to a lack of recognition from local authorities and government organisations.
Shah stresses the need for local authorities to implement a streamlined mechanism to address the persistent challenge of obtaining birth certificates for individuals who have grown up on the streets.
“The local level should research those who are seeking the birth certificate and other legal documents,” says Shah. “They should interact, interview and spend more time with them so that they easily verify about them and provide birth certificates.”
She says SathSath has discussed this matter with several local authorities, but unfortunately, its concerns have gone unheard.
In the past 16 months, Kathmandu’s Ward 8 has granted birth certificates to three street children based on recommendations from government-recognised orphanages.
“Only upon receiving a recommendation from a government-recognised orphanage do we issue a birth certificate; otherwise, we must decline,” states Aasaman Sangat, the Chair of Ward Number 8. “Issuing a birth certificate without a valid recommendation would be unethical and improper.”
However, Nabaraj Jaisi, director and information officer at the Department of National ID and Civil Registration says that the ward should not deny issuing birth certificates to those who do not have any recommendation.
“The ward has the power to use their conscience to issue birth certificates in such cases, they should utilise it and issue birth certificates for the needy,” says Jaisi.
Shah further says the deprivation of legal documents such as birth certificates is not just detaching individuals from their identification but also leads to the failure to recognise and utilise the talents of many skilled human resources.
“Numerous individuals who lack access to birth certificates possess diverse skills and expertise,” says Shah. “However, their inability to leverage their talents is attributed to the absence of essential legal documentation. Because of this, we are losing well-skilled people.”
Child rights activist Jiyam Shrestha says that the state should assume guardianship of these children. Efforts should be made to find out the actual condition of these children and their family backgrounds.
While there are no legal hurdles in providing birth certificates for these children, the reluctance of the relevant authority is due to a fear of potential risks, he says.
“We don’t train our people to tackle issues like this,” he says.
According to Article 39 of the Constitution of Nepal, “Every child shall have the right to name and birth registration along with his or her identity.”
Article 7 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child declares, “The child shall be registered immediately after birth and shall have the right from birth to a name, the right to acquire a nationality.”
However, in cases involving street children, both of these rights are often disregarded, leaving them without a clear identity and a means to escape from a seemingly endless cycle of hardship.
