GEORGE TOWN – Two female DAP politicians have vowed to continue fighting for the citizenship rights of children born abroad to Malaysian mothers until the appeal filed by the government against the high court decision granting these kids automatic citizenship is either stopped or defeated.
Penang social development exco Chong Eng urged all women’s groups, MPs and affected mothers to continuously raise a ruckus until the injustice and inequality towards women, especially with regard to the citizenship matter, end.
Speaking during a panel discussion titled “Do Mothers Have Rights?” organised by the Penang Women’s Development Corporation, she noted that gender equality laws in Malaysia require a reform as the federal constitution itself contains patriarchal words, leading to the problem at hand.
“According to a report by the Global Campaign for National Equality Rights, Malaysia is one of 25 countries that have a nationality law that denies women the equal right to confer citizenship on their children.
Do we want to be in that pool of 25 countries that most would regard as backwards or in the midst of a war?”
The issue has been brought up for decades, she said, but nothing has been done as it is bound to political will.
She said in her experience, traditional lobbying will not work as it does not do anything to “threaten” politicians.
An alternative way is to raise the profile of the affected mothers and stand on humanitarian grounds so that people know the dire situation faced by these women.
“People are too busy fighting for positions and power, and they have no time to speak out or do the things they have to do, and that is to defend the rights of the vulnerable, like women, children, mothers and senior citizens,” said Chong.
“We need more people to speak up, make it a topic of conversation. I want to offer my platform for affected mothers to tell their stories. We can have press conferences every day.
“We have nothing to lose. Is the country going to be in danger if we allow citizenship for children of Malaysian mothers?”
She expressed hope that with Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said’s appointment as the prime minister’s special adviser on law and human rights, the Pengerang MP will champion issues relating to women, children and the community at large.
“I want her to know that we are willing to work with her on this.”
Kasthuri Patto, the international secretary for Wanita DAP, said there seems to be hesitance when it comes to the Home Ministry reviewing citizenship applications submitted by Malaysian mothers, and believes that such resistance is due to a deeply patriarchal mindset.
With regard to this issue, she said, there is a lack of political will.
If the government wants to table a bill, this can easily be done with the agreement and approval of the Attorney-General’s Chambers, she said.
“It is the view of the home minister and AG. The government can quickly table bills on finance and the economy, but cannot do anything about citizenship due to the wording that states ‘father’ but not ‘mother’ in the constitution.
“Also, though the government has been granted an appeal against the decision, they could have taken the road less travelled and not file the appeal.
It is time to lobby your MPs. I believe they are back in their constituencies during the weekends. Tell them to support automatic citizenship for children born abroad to Malaysian mothers if there is a vote for a constitutional amendment.”
The Batu Kawan MP said Putrajaya can forget about securing seats in international human rights bodies, which are eyed by the Foreign Ministry, given that the government appears to refuse to look after its own people.
Meanwhile, Malaysian Human Rights Commission commissioner Datuk Mah Weng Kwai said in common law, a husband and wife are considered one, but the husband is the “one”.
Common law is from mediaeval times, but it is now 2021 and still in the Malaysian constitution, he said.
“The word ‘father’ is used 16 times in the federal constitution, and ‘mother’, only twice. This already shows the discriminatory difference.”
Between 2013 and 2018, the Home Ministry rejected outright 3,715 citizenship applications by mothers, and had 4,959 applications “in process” via Article 15(2). Only 142 applications – 1.64% – were approved.
Between 2018 and September 2019, the ministry received 2,253 fresh applications.
In total, close to 11,000 applications were submitted. Little relief was granted to the mothers, as 98% were rejected without any reason given despite the lengthy waiting period. – The Vibes, October 2, 2021
