In Modern Law
Renunciation of citizenship is particularly relevant in cases of multiple citizenship, given that additional citizenships may be acquired automatically and may be undesirable. Many countries have pragmatic policies that recognize the often arbitrary nature of citizenship claims of other countries and negative consequences, such as loss of security clearance, can mostly be expected only for actively exercising foreign citizenship, for instance by obtaining a foreign passport. People from some countries renounce their citizenship to avoid compulsory military service. However, some people may wish to be free even of the purely theoretical obligations and appearance of dual loyalty that another citizenship implies. In 2006, Boris Johnson, the Mayor of London, prompted by an international travel requirement in the U.S., renounced the US citizenship he had acquired by birth. He said, "What I want is the right not to have an American passport." Another example may be political refugees who would wish to renounce allegiance to the country from which they escaped.
Read more about this topic: Renunciation Of Citizenship
Famous quotes containing the words modern and/or law:
“An ... important antidote to American democracy is American gerontocracy. The positions of eminence and authority in Congress are allotted in accordance with length of service, regardless of quality. Superficial observers have long criticized the United States for making a fetish of youth. This is unfair. Uniquely among modern organs of public and private administration, its national legislature rewards senility.”
—John Kenneth Galbraith (b. 1908)
“The law hath not been dead, though it hath slept.”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)