PETALING JAYA: The government has been urged to respect the Sept 9 High Court’s decision that confirmed Malaysian mothers’ equal right to automatically confer citizenship to their overseas-born children.
In a joint statement, the All Women’s Action Society (Awam) and Family Frontiers said the government seems determined to exhaust every judicial avenue -- spending taxpayers’ money -- to delay the implementation of the High Court’s decision.
“This is even though it has declared an interpretation of the Constitution that vests equal rights on Malaysian women to confer citizenship. A constitutional amendment would not be necessary,” they said.
Since the High Court’s decision, Awam and Family Frontiers noted that the government had filed an appeal and a total of three stay applications to suspend implementation of the judgment.
On Nov 15, the High Court dismissed the stay application with costs to the plaintiffs, Family Frontiers and six mothers, as it was “unnecessary”.
In the ruling, the court stated that “the hardships faced by the mothers are current hardships and they have waited long enough.
On Nov 16, the government filed a stay application at the Court of Appeal and another temporary stay application at the same court the next day.
“The government insists on maintaining the status quo, refusing to issue documents recognising citizenship to these children as ordered by the High Court, pending disposal of the appeal against the High Court decision.
“Meanwhile, the government contested for and won a seat at the United Nations Human Rights Council. In its bid, it pledged to ‘strengthen efforts to achieve gender equality and women’s empowerment and eliminate violence against women’ without mentioning any plan to fulfil its promise to amend the Constitution to remove discriminatory citizenship provisions.
“The pledge and the conduct of the government are in contradiction,” they said.
Awam and Family Frontiers added that the government has a clear choice: accept the High Court’s decision or move swiftly with a time frame to amend the Constitution so that overseas-born children of Malaysian mothers and non-Malaysian fathers can finally have their right to be Malaysian.
“We see no reason for this delay. The government holds the power to change the narrative of our history, and most importantly, to improve the situation for 50% of Malaysia’s population -- the women. If they truly sympathise with our Malaysian women with non-Malaysian children, as has been said by the Home Minister himself, then in line with #16DaysofActivism, uphold #HumanRights and end this violence
against our women,” they said.
“We strongly call on the Government to withdraw the appeal and uphold the High Court’s decision to grant Malaysian women equal rights as men to automatically confer citizenship to their overseas children, and by all means, amend the Constitution as well if it wants to do so,” they added.
“Every single day the High Court’s decision is not implemented, is another day Malaysian mothers and their children are denied their fundamental human rights in their own motherland. They wonder where they fit within the framework of #KeluargaMalaysia -- while some continue to face gender-based violence. Are mothers not key to keeping their families intact?” the two NGOs said.
To this day, they also pointed out that for many Malaysian women, their non-citizen children and spouses are not granted approval on their MyTravelPass to enter the country.
“We have been in this pandemic for two years now, yet there seems to be no special temporary measures provided for these children who are forced to be born overseas while the government chooses not to honour the High Court’s judgement.
“Worse, these mothers may be placed in violent or toxic situations, unable to escape for fear of their children’s well-being. This situation has been exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic,” they said.
A Malaysian mother who testified at the recent Women’s Tribunal Malaysia 2021 revealed that she spent well over RM300,000 for her two non-Malaysian children’s education.
Besides that, she had to leave Malaysia every 90 days to renew their visas.
“I have a son who is Malaysian, what is the difference between my overseas born children and my son?” she asked.
In another case, Tee Li Li, a single, working mother is also raising a non-Malaysian born child, for she had no choice but to accept her ex-husband’s citizenship upon her child at birth for fear of rendering her child stateless.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, she turned down the opportunity to be repatriated free-of-charge, as her child would only be given a 30-day visa.
“What will happen to her when her 30 days are up?” Tee asked.
She and her daughter have Permanent Residence status in a third world country where she works, which provides them with the stability she requires for now.
