A group of Malaysians working overseas have filed an application in the Kuala Lumpur High Court to compel the Election Commission (EC) to register them as voters.

The six, all of who work in the UK, had applied to be registered as absent voters in order to be able to vote in the 13th general election.

NONE They were instead registered by the EC as ordinary voters, who must return to Malaysia to vote in person.

One of the litigants, Dr Teo Hoon Seong, said in a statement that the right to vote is the fundamental cornerstone of democracy.

“It is the absolute duty of government to ensure that each and every citizen is treated equally within the law in a manner which allows them to exercise this right.”Current regulations allow only overseas civil servants, full-time students, members of the armed forces, and their spouses to register as absent voters.

One of the litigants, Dr Teo Hoon Seong, said in a statement today that the right to vote is the fundamental cornerstone of democracy.

“It is the absolute duty of government to ensure that each and every citizen is treated equally within the law in a manner which allows them to exercise this right.”

MyOverseasVote, a lobby group for overseas Malaysian voters that supports the litigation, said few Malaysian expatriates are able to fly back to vote on short notice.

bersih rally in perth 3 "And why should they have to, when the EC is already organising diplomatic pouches to send postal ballots to Malaysian embassies and consulates in London, Sydney, New York, Hong Kong, Tokyo, etc., to enable government servants and students to vote?” asked the group.

On August 25, EC chairperson Abdul Aziz Yusof said the rules are currently being amended to allow all overseas Malaysians to vote via post.

However, the litigants said that action had not been forthcoming, and are seeking to compel the EC to amend the regulations within 14 days.

The suit was filed at the Kuala Lumpur High Court on Tuesday last week. The court has set Nov 14 to hear the application for judicial review.

"It’s time for us to be allowed a stake in our countries future. I want all Malaysians to remember this: the government works for us, not the other way round," said Teo.