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Fifth line (Identity document)

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Russian military identity card issued in 2002 indicating ethnicity in the fifth column on the left page

Fifth line (Russian: Пятая графа), or Fifth point (Russian: Пятый пункт), is an expression used in a figurative sense, meaning the indication of nationality in identity documents as a fact of belonging to a certain ethnic group.[1] In most countries of the world, a similar term (for example, English or French nationality) does not mean nationality (belonging to an ethnic group), but citizenship. The terms ethnicity and ethnic affiliation are used to denote ethnic origin. In case this line if indicated, it is rather in internal identity documents than in passports.[2]

Around the world

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China

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In China, one of the 56 officially recognized nationalities in the country must be indicated in the Chinese identity card. It is prohibited to choose a nationality at one's own discretion; the nationality indicated is that of one of the parents. Naturalized foreigners may also have a nationality that is not included in the official list.

Israel

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Israeli identity card contained ethnicity/nationality line called Leom in Hebrew (Hebrew: לאום) but that was removed due to the debate regarding the question and definition of Who is a Jew?.

Kazakhstan

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Nationality in Kazakhstan is indicated at the owner's discretion in the passport of a citizen of the Republic of Kazakhstan, identity card of a citizen of the Republic of Kazakhstan, diplomatic passport and service passport of the Republic of Kazakhstan.[3] The nationalities of the parents are indicated in the birth certificate.

Latvia

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In Latvia, nationality is indicated in the Latvian identity card. However, if desired, the "fifth column" can be omitted or changed in the identity card.[4]

Russian Federation

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According to the definition of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation, "nationality cannot have legal significance for the status of a citizen. According to the Russian constitution, citizenship of the Russian Federation is uniform and does not depend on the grounds for its acquisition".[5] Despite this, having an “inappropriate” nationality can become a source of trouble even in our time.[6]

The abolition of the mention of nationality in passports in the Russian Federation in the 1990s, and then its introduction, but no longer mandatory, has caused heated political debate.[7][8][9] At the same time, the column "nationality" (of parents) exists in the birth certificate, which is filled in at the request of the child's parents, as well as in the marriage certificate and the name change certificate. The column "nationality" still exists in the military ID, although it is not filled in.

The problem is much broader than the presence or absence of a mark in the internal passport of Russia and is considered in the context of growing interethnic tensions. For example, the Moscow City Duma proposed amendments to the "Law on Mass Media" prohibiting mentioning the nationality of criminals and their victims.[10][11]

Currently, in Russia, the right of citizens to determine their ethnicity independently and arbitrarily has led to a curious phenomenon: during the population census, people reported their affiliation with peoples whose existence as separate nations is questionable (for example, Cossacks, Pomors), or with non-existent peoples (hobbits, elves, etc.).[12]

As a result, by order of Rosstat dated 27.01.2010 No. 74, the "Alphabetical list of possible options for responses from the population ... of the 2010 All-Russian Population Census" was approved[13] (in the questionnaire, nationality is item No. 7). The significantly expanded list is limited to 1840 nationalities, among which, in particular, are "mixed race", "Soviet", "man of the earth", "man of the world", "foreigners", "internationalists" and "residents of the universe", as well as "katsaps", "khokhols", "bulbash", "chukhontsy", "chaldony", "pharaohs" and "skobari". On August 2, 2021, the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs reported that it is not working on returning the "nationality" column to the Russian internal passport.[14]

Soviet Union

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In the Soviet Union, line number 5 for indicating nationality was in the form of the Personal Record Sheet for the personnel (Russian: Личный листок по учёту кадров) of the passport organs of the Soviet Ministry of Internal Affairs (and not in the passport itself, as is often mistakenly believed), on the basis of which the passport was issued; as well as in similar sheets of the departments and departments of personnel of all state organizations.[15]

In the Soviet Union, indicating nationality in the internal passport and other identity documents was mandatory. The nationality (ethnicity) of a citizen was recorded in this column based on the nationality of his parents (or one of them). If their nationality was different, then in accordance with the Resolution of the Council of Ministers of the Soviet Union "On the Passport System in the USSR" dated August 28, 1974,[16] a citizen had the right to choose the nationality of his father or mother when receiving his first passport upon reaching the age of 16. After that, he had no right to change his nationality. For children under 16, nationality was determined (if necessary), as a rule, by the father.

A person could determine his nationality only from among the officially recognized peoples living on the territory of the Soviet Union, according to the List of Nationalities of the Soviet Union, which was first compiled in 1924–1926.[17]

Often, if the nationality of one of the parents was "problematic" (for example, Jewish, German, Crimean Tatar, etc.), a person chose the nationality of the other parent, which was more acceptable (Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, etc.)

If in Stalin's Soviet "national policy" reached the point of repressions based on nationality or deportation of entire peoples, then in the post-Stalin era, the presence of the "nationality" column in documents allowed the state to tacitly and unofficially implement "soft forms" of discrimination and restrictions on entire ethnic groups in civil rights. This concerned primarily such areas of life as the right to reside in certain territories of the Soviet Union, the right to a profession, education and place of work. If local minorities (non-titular peoples in national republics) could be subject to discrimination in the territories of individual national republics, then throughout the entire territory of the USSR, representatives of such peoples as Jews, Germans, Crimean Tatars, Greeks, Meskhetian Turks, etc. were subjected to constant, unspoken oppression in terms of hiring, admission to universities, postgraduate studies, career advancement and holding leadership positions, awarding state awards and honorary titles, membership in government bodies and Soviet representative organizations, travel abroad, etc.[18][19][20][21][22][23] This is where the ironic expression “disabled person of the fifth group” came from, meaning a person of “unsuitable” nationality.[24]

Ukraine

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In Ukraine, nationality was indicated in the birth certificate, but since 2002, this document has only two columns - for indicating the citizenship of the parents.[25] Such a column is not provided for in the passport. Thus, a person has no opportunity to somehow declare his nationality, even at will. Proposals to return it to the passport that have arisen from time to time have caused a mixed reaction.[26] Article 24 of the Constitution of Ukraine states that "Citizens of Ukraine have equal constitutional rights and freedoms and are equal before the law. There can be no privileges or restrictions based on race, skin color, political, religious or other beliefs, gender, national or social origin, property status, place of residence, language or other characteristics,” making the column on nationality unconstitutional.[27]

Uzbekistan

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In the Uzbek identity card, the indication of nationality is mandatory, along with citizenship. In the process of issuing a passport or travel document, the nationality of the child is determined by the nationality of the parents. If the parents belong to different nationalities, then when issuing an Uzbek passport or travel document, the nationality of the citizen or stateless person is recorded according to the nationality of the father or mother, depending on the wishes of the recipient of the passport or travel document.[28]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ [dic.academic.ru/dic.nsf/lower/16381 "определение термина в "Юридическом словаре""]. 2000. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)
  2. ^ "Законопроектный портфель в сфере этнических отношений". Archived from the original on 2009-07-30. Retrieved 2009-05-22.
  3. ^ "О документах, удостоверяющих личность - ИПС "Әділет"". adilet.zan.kz. Archived from the original on 2016-12-02. Retrieved 2016-12-06.
  4. ^ "Изменение записи имени, фамилии и записи о национальности". Портал услуг государственного управления (in Russian). Archived from the original on 2022-12-23. Retrieved 2022-12-23.
  5. ^ "Россиянину хорошо и без "пятой графы"". Archived from the original on 2010-05-08. Retrieved 2010-05-05.
  6. ^ ""Волчий билет"". Archived from the original on 2014-08-08. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
  7. ^ "И снова "пятая графа"". Archived from the original on 2008-05-11. Retrieved 2008-07-08.
  8. ^ "Сохранить графу "национальность" в паспорте потребовали сторонники митрополита Иоанна". Archived from the original on 2008-11-18. Retrieved 2008-08-07.
  9. ^ ""За возвращение в паспорта россиян графы "национальность"". Archived from the original on 2014-04-16. Retrieved 2013-03-01.
  10. ^ ""Пятая графа" под запретом". Archived from the original on 2007-03-16. Retrieved 2008-07-08.
  11. ^ "Нужно ли запретить СМИ называть национальность подозреваемых и потерпевших? ("Лукавая Цифра")". Archived from the original on 2013-03-16. Retrieved 2008-08-07.
  12. ^ ""Перепись выявила в России хоббитов, эльфов и скифов"". Archived from the original on 2015-04-09. Retrieved 2010-02-06.
  13. ^ "«Алфавитный перечень возможных вариантов ответов населения … Всероссийской переписи населения 2010 года»". Archived from the original on 2011-06-26. Retrieved 2010-11-24.
  14. ^ "МВД не планирует добавлять в паспорт графу "национальность"". Коммерсантъ (in Russian). 2021-08-02. Archived from the original on 2021-08-02. Retrieved 2021-08-02.
  15. ^ "ФОРМА ЛИЧНОГО ЛИСТКА ПО УЧЁТУ КАДРОВ КАК ОТРАЖЕНИЕ СОЦИАЛЬНОЙ ПОЛИТИКИ В СССР В 1930—1950-х". Archived from the original on 2017-08-16. Retrieved 2017-06-16.
  16. ^ Постановление Совета Министров СССР от 28.08.1974 № 677|Постановление Совета Министров СССР от 28.08.1974 № 677
  17. ^ Ин-т этнологии и антропологии РАН. — Предложение "о графе «национальность»: обзор дискуссии Archived 2017-11-07 at the Wayback Machine. 19.02.2015
  18. ^ "Депортация народов". Archived from the original on 2013-01-16. Retrieved 2008-08-07.
  19. ^ Слёзкин, Юрий Львович Эра Меркурия. Евреи в современном мире. — М.: Новое литературное обозрение, 2007. — ISBN 5-86793-355-5
  20. ^ Государственный антисемитизм в СССР. От начала до кульминации. 1938—1953. Серия: Россия. XX век. Документы. — М: Материк, 2005 г. ISBN 5-85646-114-2
  21. ^ Документ Московской Хельсинкской группы № 112 «Дискриминация евреев при поступлении в университеты» Archived 2013-10-04 at the Wayback Machine, 1978 год
  22. ^ Дискриминация крымских татар продолжается Archived 2009-06-11 at the Wayback Machine, Московская Хельсинкская группа, 1977 год
  23. ^ Цаленко М. (2011-07-01). "Факты, о которых предпочитают не вспоминать". Заметки по еврейской истории. Archived from the original on 2012-04-19. Retrieved 2011-09-16.
  24. ^ "Евгений Кудряц. "Инвалиды пятой группы"". Archived from the original on 2013-07-30. Retrieved 2012-01-22.
  25. ^ "Про затвердження зразків книг реєстрації актів цивільного стану та описів бланків свідоцтв, що видаються державними органами реєстрації актів цивільного стану". Офіційний вебпортал парламенту України (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 2023-08-30.
  26. ^ "Литвин предлагает вернуть в паспорт "пятую графу"". Archived from the original on 2009-05-14. Retrieved 2009-05-22.
  27. ^ "Конституція України — Розділ II". Archived from the original on 2019-03-06. Retrieved 2020-08-14. {{cite web}}: no-break space character in |title= at position 20 (help)
  28. ^ Кабинета Министров Республики Узбекистан (2011-07-07). "Об утверждении Положения о порядке выдачи биометрического паспорта гражданина Республики Узбекистан и проездного документа лица без гражданства для лиц, не достигших 16-летнего возраста". Национальная база данных законодательства Республики Узбекистан. Archived from the original on 2018-08-02. Retrieved 2018-08-02.
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