Japan and China are giving dual citizens an ultimatum on nationality -- and loyalty
Anna was born with the right to dual citizenship, because she has a Japanese mother and American father. She spent her life traveling between both countries, and says she felt deeply connected to the two cultures.
But Japan requires those with multiple passports to pick one by the age of 22 -- an impossible choice for Anna, who requested a pseudonym for privacy reasons.
"I'm mixed race, I've lived both in Japan and the US, I speak both languages, I am completely split down the middle in terms of my identity," she said. "It's like asking someone whether they love their mother or father more. It's such a cruel question."
The past few decades have seen people travel and live abroad more, with the number of international migrants -- people who changed their country of residence for at least a year -- tripling from 1970 to 2015, according to the International Organization for Migration.
At the same time, tolerance to dual citizenship has generally increased. In 1960, less than one-third of countries allowed citizens to acquire a second nationality, compared to three-quarters today, according to a 2019 paper by Maartin Vink, professor of political sociology of Maastricht University in the Netherlands.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/japan-and-china-are-giving-dual-citizens-an-ultimatum-on-nationality-and-loyalty/ar-BB1eAh1V?li=BBnb7Kz
