Kids born overseas to M'sian mums can now apply for citizenship

Summary

• Children born overseas to Malaysian mothers can now apply for citizenship, following a historic court settlement between six Malaysian mothers and a family rights group with the federal government.

• The Federal Court today recorded the consent order, which amounted to the settlement of the six Malaysian mothers and the group’s long-standing legal battle.

Children born overseas to Malaysian mothers can now apply for citizenship.

This is after six Malaysian mothers today settled with the federal government a Federal Court appeal over citizenship for their children born overseas.

Counsel Gurdial Singh Nijar, who is acting for the mothers and co-appellant Family Frontiers, and the government’s senior federal counsel Liew Horng Bin confirmed the settlement.

“I am pleased to inform the court that after the last hearing, the appellants engaged in serious and intense negotiations with the government.

“We have agreed on the terms stated in our consent order to settle this matter and withdraw the appeal. I ask this court to approve our consent order,” Gurdial informed Chief Justice Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat, the chairperson of the five-person panel.

Liew also confirmed the settlement during proceedings before the panel, which was also comprised of Court of Appeal President Abang Iskandar Abang Hashim and Federal Court judges P Nallini, Nordin Hassan, and Hanipah Farikullah.

The settlement comes with the terms that the mothers’ children born overseas retain their citizenship, which was obtained during the appeal period.

Another condition is that other Malaysian mothers in similar situations as the appellants could now apply to the Home Ministry for citizenship of their children born overseas under the age of 18.

The mothers and the rights group initially won citizenship for the children at the Kuala Lumpur High Court in 2021. However, the Court of Appeal reversed the lower court’s decision in 2022.

In October last year, Parliament passed a constitutional amendment to impart automatic citizenship for children born overseas to Malaysian mothers and foreign fathers.

However, as of today, it has yet to be gazetted into law.

According to today’s consent order, an under-18 child born overseas to a Malaysian mother and foreign father, before the enforcement of the Constitutional (Amendment) Act 2024, may apply for Malaysian citizenship per Article 15(2) of the Federal Constitution.

Article 15(2) of the Federal Constitution permits children under 21 with at least one Malaysian parent to be registered as citizens.

The consent term states that the child would be granted citizenship if the application meets the requirements of Article 26(1) of the Constitution, follows the procedures under Article 15(2), and includes all required supporting documents, as laid out under the Constitutional (Amendment) Act 2024.

Article 26(1) states that no person shall be deprived of their citizenship except in accordance with the law.

‘Today, we celebrate’

During a press conference at the Palace of Justice today, Gurdial said the consent judgment is a “historic judgment to correct decades-long discrimination against (Malaysian) women”.

Chiming in, Family Frontiers president Adlyn Adam Teoh, one of the six mother appellants, welcomed the landmark settlement.

“This was never just a legal battle. It was a battle of love, dignity, and the fundamental truth that a mother should not have to fight to belong in her own country with her own child.

“Like so many other Malaysian mothers, I endured endless uncertainty, wondering if my son would ever be fully accepted in the land I call home. I carried the weight of bureaucracy, of legal hurdles, of the heartbreak that came with being told that my child was somehow ‘less Malaysian’ because of the circumstances of his birth.

“But today, we celebrate. We celebrate for every Malaysian mother and every child who will not have to endure what we did,” Teoh said as her young son stood beside her.

The activist fought for her son’s citizenship for 10 years before the child became a Malaysian.

In a press statement later this morning, Family Frontiers said it is working closely with the government to ensure that no adult child of a Malaysian mother is left behind, including those whose mothers are no longer with them.

“We strongly urged the government to ensure the implementation of the 2024 constitutional amendment without further delay. Until then, Malaysian mothers living abroad will continue to face the burdensome and costly journey of returning to Malaysia to secure citizenship for their overseas-born children. It is time to ease their hardship and uphold the principles of equality and fairness for all Malaysian families.

“The Constitutional (Amendment) Act 2024 gives Malaysian women the long-overdue right to pass on citizenship to their overseas-born children, just as Malaysian men can. 

“We also sincerely appeal to the Home Ministry to honour its commitment to expedite pending citizenship applications, bringing much-needed relief to families who have waited far too long,” the NGO said.

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