KUALA LUMPUR – The new government committee formed to address the rights of Malaysian women to have their overseas-born children receive their due Malaysian citizenship has been urged to act swiftly.
Rights group Family Frontiers stressed the importance for the committee, which will be formed and led by Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein, to ensure that Malaysian women and their children are protected.
“Delaying Malaysian women’s equal citizenship rights will result in women and children being forced to remain in situations of harm and violence; and children being denied a wide range of fundamental rights such as education, healthcare and freedom of movement,” the group said in a statement.
Yesterday, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Parliament and Law) Datuk Seri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar was reported as saying the decision on forming the committee was made at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday.
Wan Junaidi said the government had wanted to form a committee after a high court decision on the issue and had asked the Conference of Rulers to allow an interim means to facilitate a thorough study of the matter.
He said Hishammuddin will receive instructions from the cabinet to address the matter.
Meanwhile, Family Frontiers raised questions on why the government is selective in the application of the dual citizenship narrative when arguing against the equal citizenship rights of Malaysian women.
“Are foreign football players who are accorded Malaysian citizenship exempted from the federal constitution provision that prohibits dual citizenship after the age of 21?” they asked.
The group also took a jab at Putrajaya, saying that the government conveniently ignored the fact that children born overseas to Malaysian fathers and foreign mothers may also hold dual citizenship.
“This is also the case with children born overseas whose parents are both Malaysians but are born in countries that follow the ‘jus soli’ principle where citizenship is based on the place of birth,” they said.
“Malaysian women who give birth overseas are forced to obtain their foreign spouses’ citizenship for their children as their children are denied travel documents to be issued by the Malaysian embassies overseas so that they can return to Malaysia.
“We cannot expect these children to remain undocumented in a foreign country. This situation is in turn used against Malaysian mothers when seeking Malaysian citizenship for their children.” – The Vibes, September 9, 2022
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