GISBH children could be declared illegitimate or stateless, say lawyers

 

Earlier this month, police raided welfare homes linked to GISBH and uncovered cases of child neglect and abuse. (PDRM pic)

KUALA LUMPUR: 

Children rescued from charity homes associated with Global Ikhwan Services and Business Holdings face the risk of being declared illegitimate or stateless, according to two shariah lawyers.

Musa Awang, president of the Shariah Lawyers Association of Malaysia said children without valid acknowledgement of their parentage could be declared 

anak wait syubhah

 or children born out of wedlock or from illegitimate sexual intercourse, Bernama reported.

Another lawyer, Hariz Yusoff, said children whose parentage is in doubt were at risk of being declared stateless, or without citizenship, as Malaysian law is very strict about granting citizenship based on parentage and supporting evidence.

Musa said in the case of children rescued from charity homes, their parentage may be uncertain as the parents may be unaware of the children’s existence.

Last week, police said the parents of 572 children and teenagers rescued from charity homes linked to GISBH have yet to come forward to claim their children.

Musa said a valid marriage certificate is required of a father claiming someone to be his son. 

If there is no certificate, he needs to get confirmation from the shariah court to confirm the marriage,

 he said.

Musa added that it is the responsibility of all Muslims, including the government or Baitulmal, to care for or provide placement for abandoned children until they reach adulthood, or to place them with Muslim adoptive families who can properly care for them.

Last week, Inspector-General of Police Razarudin Husain said some parents of children found in GISBH homes are believed to be trying to prevent the exposure of their tactic to solicit donations by claiming the charity homes are orphanages, when in fact the children are the offspring of its members.

Some parents who were arrested even denied that the children rescued were theirs. In some cases, police interrogations revealed that children, especially those under 12, claimed they did not even know who their parents were, Razarudin said. - FMT