Joint Statement: Madani Government Must Abandon Regressive Citizenship Amendments

Wong Yew Lee
Written by Wong Yew Lee on
Joint Statement: Madani Government Must Abandon Regressive Citizenship Amendments

Joint Statement: Madani Government Must Abandon Regressive Citizenship Amendments

Madani government must abandon regressive citizenship amendments

The Malaysian Citizenship Rights Alliance (MCRA), The Child Rights protection group and Impacted Malaysian parents urges PM Anwar’s Madani Government to promptly abandon the proposed regressive citizenship amendments which will further impact categories of children who are constitutionally Malaysian and who have been arbitrarily and wilfully denied citizenship by KDN. These amendments aim to legitimise KDN’s unconstitutional actions which do not have the mandate of the rakyat.

Further, these regressive amendments are being made without engaging with and seeking input from organisations working on the ground with impacted individuals and communities; and are being proposed without understanding the issues or collecting relevant information and data. Changing citizenship laws, which grant children access to other fundamental constitutional and human rights, based on whimsical or discriminatory motives will lead to unjust consequences and place more innocent children at risk of harm and violation. Any amendments to the criteria for acquiring citizenship should only be done after thorough data gathering, research, examination of comparative laws and exploring alternative solutions to existing issues. It is deeply worrying that this Madani government is approaching such crucial and fundamental legislation in an arbitrary, cavalier and negligent manner with complete disregard for the categories of children who will suffer as a consequence of these draconian amendments.

We are alarmed at Deputy Home Minister Datuk Seri Dr Shamsul Anuar Nasarah’s comment that the government’s proposal to abrogate section 1(e) and section 2(3) in Part II of the Second Schedule “was aimed at preventing the misuse of obtaining citizenship”, such as by ‘illegitimate’ children who claim that they do not have any citizenship at birth. This statement was made despite acknowledging that these sections “fundamentally protect any person from becoming stateless”. The Deputy Minister’s lack of awareness and knowledge of these issues is both astounding and embarrassing, and indicative of the lack of informed decision-making that is taking place about this critical constitutional issue. In all the cases filed before the Malaysian court under section 1(e), the affected children have been able to prove that they are not citizens of any other country, whilst the government has failed to prove otherwise, despite having access to inter-governmental (G2G) communication and exchange of data and information. To abrogate the fundamental rights of vulnerable children because the government has been derelict in its responsibilities is cruel and inhumane.

We find the Deputy Minister’s rationale wholly unacceptable and particularly discriminatory against children born out of wedlock, and a clear abrogation of their responsibility and obligation to act in the best interest of children, and to ensure their protection and their right to life with dignity.

We further make reference to the response given by the KDN Deputy Minister that CSOs and several other stakeholders were merely given a briefing on the proposed amendments in June . We remind the Deputy Minister that we were left with many unanswered questions and any requests for data or information in support of amendments have not yet been provided. In addition, repeated requests to meet with the Minister of Home Affairs, Saifuddin Nasution, have been ignored. This raises concerns about the preparedness and assessment by KDN on the potential impact and harm these amendments may cause, particularly by leaving children who are Malaysian, and not citizens of any other country, without any avenues to pursue their claims for citizenship through judicial or administrative means.

During the briefing, CSOs had also pointed out that KDN’s understanding of the laws of the countries mentioned in the comparative study is grossly erroneous, as all the mentioned countries (i.e. United Kingdom, Singapore and Japan) do not discriminate against children born out of wedlock to their citizens. These countries also provide automatic citizenship for foundling children.

Citizenship laws play a crucial role in defining the legal status and rights of individuals within a nation, and their contributions towards development. Any changes to these laws should be made with careful consideration, reflecting a commitment to principles of justice, equality, and the protection of individual human and other rights. Addressing statelessness is not only a matter of human rights but also crucial for sustainable development. Efforts to prevent and reduce statelessness should involve legal reforms to prevent statelessness, identify and resolve existing situations of statelessness to ensure that all individuals can fully participate in the social, economic, and political aspects of their communities. Being ignorant about the stateless population among Malaysian children, can only lead to multigenerational instability.

-The End-

Contact persons on behalf of MCRA:

  1. Dato Dr. Hartini Zainuddin, Co- Founder, Yayasan Chow Kit hartini@yck.org.my |012 790 7818

  2. Maalini Ramalo, Director, DHRRA Malaysia maalini.ramalo@dhrramalaysia.org.my | 012 635 6351

  3. Sharmila Sekaran, Chair Person, Voice of the Children - sharmila.sekaran@gmail.com | 019 233 0087

  4. Suri Kempe, President, Family Frontiers surikempe@gmail.com | 019 399 3886

Endorsed by 60 Organisations, dated 16 December 2023:

  • Advocates for Non-Discrimination and Access to Knowledge (ANAK), Sabah
  • ALIRAN
  • Association of Family Support & Welfare Selangor & KL (Family Frontiers)
  • Association of Toy Libraries Msia
  • Association of Women Lawyers (AWL)
  • Bait Al Amanah (BAA)
  • Borneo Komrad
  • Buku Jalanan Chow Kit
  • Cahaya Society
  • Centre for Independent Journalism
  • Childline Foundation
  • ⁠Community Transformation Initiative Bhd
  • CRIB Foundation
  • Development of Human Resources for Rural Areas (DHRRA), Malaysia
  • ENGENDER
  • ERA Consumer Malaysia
  • ETANIA Schools Sabah
  • FOMCA
  • GERAK (Pergerakan Tenaga Akademik Malaysia)
  • HaKita
  • HumanKind PLT
  • Iskul Sama diLaut Omadal
  • Johor Women’s League (JEWEL) ⁠- Kemban Kolektif
  • Koalisi Buruh Migran Berdaulat (KBMB)
  • Lawyer Kamek, Sarawak
  • Legal Unit, Agamam Ani Msia
  • Malaysia Stateless Alliance (MSA)
  • Malaysian Association of Social Workers
  • Malaysian Collaborative Practice Group
  • Malaysian Council for Child Welfare
  • Nat Early Childhood Intervention Council
  • Our Journey
  • Partners of Community Organisations (PACOS Trust)
  • Persatuan Kebajikan Dan Kepenggunaan Wanita
  • Persatuan Kebangsaan Hak Asasi Manusia (HAKAM)
  • Persatuan Pengasuhan dan Perkembangan Awal Kanak-kanak Berdaftar Malaysia (PPBM)
  • Persatuan Promosi Hak Asasi Manusia (PROHAM)
  • Persatuan Sahabat Wanita Selangor
  • Pertubuhan Kebajikan pp th. Vivekananda Rembau NS
  • PERTUBUHAN MASYARAKAT RAHMAH, SOSIAL & LESTARI KUALA LUMPUR DAN SELANGOR (RSL)
  • Play Unltd PLT
  • Protect and Save the Children
  • Puak Payong
  • PurpleLily Social Association Kuching
  • Rahman Student League
  • Sabah Aids Support Services Association (KASIH)
  • Sarawak Women for Women Society
  • Sisters in Islam
  • Stateless Malaysians (Stateless.my)
  • Stateless Malaysians Citizenship Movement (SMCM)
  • SUARAM (Suara Rakyat Malaysia)
  • Sustainable Development Network Malaysia (SUSDEN Malaysia)
  • The Rise Malaysia
  • Tiada.Guru
  • TKHAS (Terabai Kenyalang Heritage Association of Sarawak
  • Undi Sabah
  • Vanguards4Change
  • Voice of Children (VOC)
  • Yayasan Chow Kit (YCK)

Endorsed by 46 Individuals/activist and impacted Malaysian parents, dated 16 December 2023:

  • Dato’ Dr Amar-Singh HSS, Consultant Paediatrician
  • Prof Dato Noor Aziah , Commissioner of SUHAKAM
  • Ranee Sreedharan (Advocate and solicitor for stateless persons)
  • Azira Aziz, Lawyer (from Child Protection group)
  • Wong Kueng Hui (Former statelesss individual & activist)
  • Fan Siew Lee (mother of stateless child)
  • Tan Kim Hwa (mother of stateless child)
  • Vanessa ( stateless )
  • Nurul Akashah ( Stateless )
  • ⁠Lee Cheah Cherng (father of stateless child
  • Wilfred Fernandez (father of stateless child)
  • Lee Seng Loong - father of a stateless child
  • Tan Hooi Lim - father of a stateless child
  • Heah Tze Ling - father of a stateless child
  • Chandra Morgan A/L Velutham @ Velautham (father of stateless child)
  • Sharene Kam Guat Mei (mother of stateless child)
  • Lee Su Fon (father of stateless Child)
  • Lee Chi Kah (father of stateless child)
  • Sandra Lee (guardian of former Stateless child).
  • Teon Tiong Ann (father of stateless childs)
  • Nadesh Zakuan b. Abd Rahman (father of stateless child)
  • Lim Wee Seong (father of former stateless child)
  • Rodney Raj Edward (Parents of non Malaysian children)
  • Philip Choong Kim Hoong(stateless age 41)
  • Heng Kay Seng (member of MSA)
  • ⁠Mahendran Raj ( Husband and father to stateless) ⁠- Janice Tan ( stateless ) ⁠- Muhammad Irfan tiong(father of stateless)
  • Jenness Ong Jia Xun（Stateless）
  • ⁠Hor Chung Hung “Pass away”(father of stateless- mother Elizabeth) ⁠- Faridah Abdullah-stateless individual ⁠- Timothy Tean Chong Chern (father of stateless child)
  • Santhi (mother of stateless child) ⁠- Chloe Ooi Eng Fong ( mother of adopted stateless child)
  • Farizul Abdullah - stateless individual
  • Aaliyah Marcia Abdullah - Mother of adopted stateless child via Orphancare & JKM
  • Mustafa Bin UPC Mohamed - Father of adopted stateless child via JKM
  • Justine Morais, affected parent
  • Anita Premila Paul(mother of formerly stateless child)
  • Victor Francis(biological father to stateless child)
  • Tan Han Fang (guardian of stateless child)
  • Sandra Stephanie Theraviam (mother of formerly stateless child)
  • Lee Chee Siang - father of adopted child
  • Tan Jun Lok -stateless
  • Tiew Chai Kee-father of adopted child
  • ⁠Wong Yew Lee (former stateless individual)

Statement is issued in response to: In response to KDN Deputy Minister response in Dewan Negara https://www.nst.com.my/news/nation/2023/12/990065/proposed-amendments-citizenship-law-aim-prevent-misuse-and-statelessness

Wong Yew Lee

Wong Yew Lee

Convenor of Stateless.my, stateless Malaysian. Stateless by paper, Malaysian by heart.