Federated States of Micronesia debates changing constitution to allow dual citizenship

The Federated States of Micronesia will again vote to change its constitution to allow dual citizenship, sparking a debate over whether such a move would help or hurt families living outside the nation retain ancestral land ownership. It has been almost two years since constitutional delegates convened in January 2020 but the constitutional convention was cut short by a recess on March 13, 2020 in response to the pandemic. Delegates were to reconvene once the pandemic was under control. But the convention still has not been scheduled, with delegates outside the FSM facing travel interruptions from Covid-19 protocols and no provision for virtual meetings. [...] Former FSM Vice President of Redley Killion said he believed there was an “outcry for change” in the citizenship laws, especially in the country’s ever-growing diaspora. The country has voted twice, in 2005 and 2017, to keep the status quo.  [...] As it stands, Micronesians move to the U.S. and other nations, start lives and careers and eventually have families. Because dual citizenship is not allowed, their children must choose between their parents’ country or the one they were born in. Choosing the latter means forfeiting land rights.
Read the full article here: Honolulu Civil Beat