Citizenship

The concept of citizenship can be traced to the Greek city state

Athens- there the people were divided into two classes, citizens and
slaves. But in modern times the distinction between people are
made -citizens and aliens.
Citizens enjoys the status of an individual as a full and responsible
member of political community.
There are two kinds of citizens : natural citizens and naturalised
citizens
Citizenship implies full membership of a community
Citizenship implies two way relationship between individual and the
state- one must fulfil his duties and obligations towards the state
and the state grants him civil, political and social rights

Different societies will attach different rights and duties to the status
of citizen, there is no universal principle which determines
necessary rights and duties
Nature and evolution of citizenship
• The citizenship is the product of a community where the
right to rule is decided by prescribed procedure which
expresses the will of the general body of its members
• Roman empire provided the classical example of traditional
understanding of citizenship
• In medieval period the citizenship was restricted
• The growth of liberal thinking played major role for the
development of the concept citizenship( Locke, Rousseau
etc…), and the revolutions like French and American war of
independence played major role for its growth
• The concept of citizenship is a evolutionary in nature. The
different stages of its growth shows variety of its
perspectives
 Components of citizenship
• Contemporary society citizenship is primarily
concerned with certain rights
• The scope of Civil, political and social rights can
be normally analysed on the basis of citizenship
• The word citizen may be distinguished from the
word alien. An alien is a person living in a state
but owing allegiance to another state.
• A citizen, on the other hand, is a person who
owes allegiance to the state in which he lives. An
alien is generally denied the political privileges
which belong only to a citizen.
• Aliens reside temporarily as diplomats or
businessmen or students or they are casual
visitors or tourists
• Citizens as member of civil society, bound to the society by
certain duties, subject to its authority, and equal
participation in all its advantages
• Citizenship consists not merely in enjoying certain rights
and guarantees, but it also require one’s obligations- or an
active participation in public affairs and social life of the
country
• The enlightened citizenship constitutes the true foundation
of the state- right ordering of loyalties
• A good citizen serves not only his country but also
humanity
• The citizen must understand the value of the individual in
society or good citizenship is the active side of one’s
chracter
 Two type of citizens
• Natural citizens: natural citizenship is acquired
on two bases: a) by blood relationship( jus
sanguins) b) by place of birth(jus soli)
• Naturalised citizenship is acquired by giving up
natural citizenship and adopting the
citizenship of another state through fulfilling
the various conditions
 Theories on citizenship
• Liberal theory
• Communitarian theory
• Marxist theory
• Pluralist theory