Shaping Citizenship in a Globalized World

Abstract

Citizenship and membership in a nation state may constitute a significant element of identity. Every society looks for the legitimacy of the principles governing it within its own origins. Therefore, cultural diversity is synonymous with juridical and ethical difference, which can range from the recognition of several sources of legitimacy of law to a different relationship between these sources. In the legal sphere, each society’s constant pursuit of its own origins has its greatest expression in the rules of citizenship chosen. For example, the provision of citizenship tests within the EU Member States’ naturalization policies bears witness to this attitude, strengthening the requirements to obtain the citizenship. In fact, during the last decade, the European Union has experienced the rise of test-based forms of integration and this indicates the adaptation of the legal system to increasing flows of migration. Similarly, in the Middle East, the State of Israel represents a paradigmatic case of how the survival of cultural ties is nowadays maintained in granting citizenship. This also highlights how the national law adapts to the historical context in order to allow the respect of economic, political and social rights. Against the perceived Jewish diaspora, indeed, the State of Israel established the Law of Return (ḥok ha-shvūt), namely every Jew has the right to return and obtain, along with citizenship, other facilities to rebuild his life there (‘aliyah). Could these two approaches from Western Europe and the Middle East testify to a strong state sovereignty in choosing their ideal citizens? In conclusion, the purpose of the paper is to show how naturalization policies are deeply influenced by historical, cultural and social elements. Could therefore these naturalization systems be considered anachronistic in the context of the XXI century globalized world?