Lawmakers need more space to debate the proposed amendments to the Federal Constitution on citizenship laws, said Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail.
Speaking to Malaysiakini, Saifuddin said all MPs will have the opportunity to debate the Constitution (Amendment) Bill 2024 at the next Dewan Rakyat sitting, which will commence in late June.
“Yesterday was the last day of the (Dewan Rakyat) session. Today is a (public) holiday. In the order of the meeting, the Constitution (Amendment) Bill 2024 was after the Cyber Security Bill (2024).
"The first and second readings (of the bill) have been completed. Only the debate will be brought forward to the next (Dewan Rakyat) session," he added.
The bill would require the support of two-thirds of Dewan Rakyat members, which is 148 votes, as it involves amending the Constitution.
On Monday, Saifuddin tabled the first reading of the bill and said the second and third reading will also be presented in the same Parliamentary session, which concluded yesterday.
This comes after the government agreed to drop a controversial amendment which would deny automatic citizenship to foundlings.
The government also dropped an amendment that would affect stateless Orang Asli.
Still problematic
However, critics and activists say that the remaining amendments are still problematic.
They argued that foundlings’ right to citizenship may be inadvertently restricted if the government proceeds with plans to deny children of “permanent residents” automatic citizenship.
This was because the provision for foundlings states that these babies are considered to be children of mothers who are "permanently residents" of the country and therefore entitled to automatic citizenship.
Other controversial amendments that are still on the table include one to shorten the window for stateless Malaysians to register for citizenship from 21 years to 18 years.
Another amendment could end up depriving foreign wives of Malaysian men of citizenship if they decide to leave a bad marriage.
When tabling the bill, Saifuddin reiterated that the constitutional amendments were not intended to deny any groups the right to obtain citizenship.
Instead, he said the amendments were carefully crafted to safeguard the country’s security and sovereignty. - Mkini
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