‘Write to ministry on stateless kids’ education, not issue appeal through press’

KUCHING – Sarawak’s welfare minister has been urged to write to the state Education Ministry to register her opposition to a policy requiring stateless children to produce a passport to be enrolled in government schools.

DAP’s Bukit Assek assemblyman, Irene Chang, in a statement today, said it is no use for Datuk Seri Fatimah Abdullah, who holds the welfare, community well-being, women, family and childhood development portfolio, to appeal through the media, as the ministry is not compelled to officially take note of it.

Instead, she said, the state minister should communicate officially with the ministry and highlight the “Zero-Rejection Policy” implemented under the previous Pakatan Harapan government.

“The Zero-Rejection Policy aimed to ensure that all children in the country, including undocumented children and those with special needs, have access to education.”

Under the policy, applicants acting for undocumented children need only produce any one of the following documents to be accepted into government schools: a birth certificate, a guardianship order, or an adoption certificate. 

They also have to prove the child’s connection with a Malaysian, and that efforts have been made to apply for citizenship under Article 15A of the federal constitution, said Chang. 

She said it was reported in 2019 that the policy enabled at least 2,635 undocumented children to enrol in public schools that year.  

The requirement for a passport is a regressive step by the Perikatan Nasional government, she said, and will lead to many undocumented children again being deprived of an education, as what happened during Barisan Nasional’s time in power. 

“In fact, I have already received a few calls from concerned guardians and adoptive parents in Sarawak concerning the latest policy.

“A few who thought that their children had already been ‘successfully enrolled’, and who have been participating in online studies in government schools since the reopening of the school year, have now been informed by the schools that their ‘enrolment’ could not be approved after all. 

“This would definitely have a detrimental effect, both physically and psychologically, on the children concerned.

“Therefore, I urge Datuk Seri Fatimah and the Sarawak government to officially communicate with the Education Ministry and federal government, to speak up on behalf of the stateless children in Sarawak.

“They should put aside politics and strongly advocate the continuation of good policies, even if they were the initiatives of the previous PH government.” 

She said suggestions to improve PH’s Zero-Rejection Policy, to enable even more undocumented children to receive an education, can also be made.

Stressing that education is the foundation for people to achieve success, Chang said there is no point in the Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) state administration constantly showcasing its political achievements if it cannot influence the federal government to continue with good policies.

Ending these policies will adversely affect the physical, emotional, mental and psychological well-being of a sizeable portion of future generations, she said.

“This will be one of the defining moments to show whether the GPS government indeed has the political clout to positively influence decisions for the benefit of both documented and undocumented people.” – The Vibes, February 4, 2021