Muda blasts BN for overseas-born kids' citizenship polls promise

BN chairperson Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s promise to resolve the issue of citizenship for overseas-born children of Malaysian women as part of the coalition’s election manifesto was blasted by Muda, who said it is merely a political ploy.

Muda’s central committee member Ainie Haziqah Shafiee said it is laughable for BN to promise to resolve this if they are elected into government since the issue had existed for decades, even when the coalition was in power.

Zahid’s vow yesterday comes after the Court of Appeal on Aug 5 sided with the government in finding that children born to Malaysian mothers overseas can be denied Malaysian citizenship.

“This is certainly a ploy by BN because the issue of citizenship for children born to Malaysian mothers overseas is not new.

“BN has been in power for six decades. Zahid himself was home minister from 2013 to 2018, but did he ever pay attention to this issue all this while?” Ainie, who heads Muda’s family and gender bureau said in a statement.

BN chairperson Ahmad Zahid Hamidi

She said if BN was serious about resolving the problem, it could through the government table amendments to the Federal Constitution to allow Malaysian mothers the right to confer citizenship to their children, regardless of where they are born or who the children’s fathers are.

The track record of BN administrations also show that women’s issues were not at the forefront of their policies and they had even repeatedly discriminated against women, she added.

As such, she urged women voters to not be duped by BN’s “fairy tales” and reject the coalition at the polls.

BN Wanita wants constitution changed

Zahid had promised to include the issue in BN’s election manifesto at the coalition’s convention yesterday.

He did so after the coalition’s women’s wing appealed for the government to amend the Federal Constitution to address the matter.

BN Wanita chief Noraini Ahmad in her adjournment speech urged the government to amend Article 14(1)(b) of the Constitution, to include the word “mother” or for the word “father” to be changed to “parents”.

Without these changes, children born overseas to Malaysian mothers but foreign fathers cannot automatically receive Malaysian citizenship, based on the Court of Appeal ruling.

The case was brought against the government by six Malaysian mothers in December 2020, with support from the Association of Family Support and Welfare Selangor & KL, known as Family Frontiers.

Malaysia is one of 25 countries that do not give mothers and fathers equal rights under the country’s citizenship laws. 

Malaysian fathers with foreign spouses can confer citizenship to their overseas-born children automatically, regardless of the citizenship of the mother.

While some Malaysian women who gave birth overseas have succeeded in obtaining citizenship for their children after years of trying, others are left hanging without any reason provided.

This despite lodging their applications for citizenship with the consulate within months of the child’s birth.

Some children have become stateless as a result, while others have to take on their father’s nationality.

The child’s status as a non-citizen is an issue if the family resides in Malaysia, and is especially tenuous if the mother is a single parent.

Some women have also reported being forced to travel home, at times against medical advice, to ensure they give birth in Malaysia to secure citizenship for their children.  

Covid-19 travel restrictions during the height of the pandemic also meant some women could not travel home to give birth. - Mkini