Revocation of citizenship: how punitive theories and restorative justice principles apply to acts of disloyalty toward the state

Abstract

Several countries have recently amended or attempted to amend their laws to make it easier for the state to revoke citizenship. Such laws suggest that citizenship is tied to loyalty to the nation state, and can therefore be taken away if it is deemed to have been breached. This paper focuses on possible justifications for applying the punishment of citizenship revocation to acts that are ‘contrary to the interests of the state’ or manifest ‘disloyalty’ to the nation. The paper compares such acts with other criminal acts, and analyses them according to a conventional punitive model of criminal law that includes also a restorative justice perspective. The paper argues that revocation of citizenship as punishment for acts of disloyalty can be justified by several theories of punishment, such as retribution, deterrence, denunciation, rehabilitation, and prevention. When it comes to carrying out the revocation of citizenship, however, several problems may arise. As a possible solution, the paper suggests applying a restorative justice approach to minor or moderate acts of disloyalty.