PETALING JAYA: While some groups laud the move to proceed with proposed constitutional amendments allowing children born abroad to Malaysian mothers to obtain citizenship, they say the other five proposed amendments to citizenship laws were a step backwards.
They said the five amendments will affect children born out of wedlock to Malaysian men, stateless children adopted by Malaysian parents, abandoned babies or children and families with generations of stateless children born in Malaysia.
It will also remove safeguards and potentially keep these children in a cycle of statelessness, they said.
Children’s rights activist Datuk Dr Hartini Zainuddin said proposed amendments granting Malaysian mothers the equal right to confer automatic citizenship on their children born overseas, just like Malaysian fathers, were a significant step towards equality and human rights.
She pointed out how Malaysian law faced criticism for gender discrimination, particularly because citizenship could not be passed by Malaysian mothers to their children on an equal basis with Malaysian fathers.
“This discrepancy not only discriminated against women but also contributed to statelessness among children born to Malaysian mothers and foreign fathers, especially if born abroad,” she said.
She, however, lamented the decision to continue with the “regressive” amendments.
“They will strip citizenship from Malaysian children coming from vulnerable groups.
“It will deprive our children of the very essence of childhood and undermine the rights and futures of countless Malaysian children who deserve the government’s protection and support.
“Once the amendments become law, these children’s citizenship applications will be at the discretion of the Home Minister,” Hartini said.
Describing it as “shortsighted”, Hartini said it would create an underbelly of more stateless people.
She added that stateless individuals often face numerous challenges, including limited access to education, healthcare, employment and travel.
“No bank account, no work and always at the risk of detention,” she said, stressing that the five proposed amendments should be stopped.
Voice of the Children chairperson Sharmila Sekaran said while they were happy and supported the proposed amendments for children born abroad to Malaysian mothers, there were still concerns with the other proposed amendments to obtaining citizenship.
“These concerns have not been addressed. We need data to support the narrative for the proposed amendments,” she said.
She said a national plan of action to end statelessness should be in place, adding that the process for granting citizenship should be transparent and accountable.
“If the government decides to go ahead with these five amendments, it has to be transparent and easily available to the public,” she said.
Sharmila said there should also be a way for Parliament to have oversight over the procedures and processes for how citizenship is granted instead of being at the ministry’s discretion.
“This way, the procedures and processes cannot just be changed,” she added.
Malaysia Citizenship Rights Alliance representative Maalini Ramalo said that if Article 15A was a sufficient provision for addressing cases of stateless children, there would not be issues of people complaining about the long wait for citizenship.
“We don’t know the reasons for rejection.
“Sometimes there are those who submit the same documents multiple times with no approvals, yet on the final round they get approved.
“Go ahead with amendments for the mothers, but not at the cost of vulnerable children’s rights,” added Maalini, who is the Development of Human Resources for Rural Areas social protection director.
