These children are innocent. Their citizenship right must not be denied because of the discrimination we have against their mothers.

The cabinet has recently agreed to amend the Federal Constitution to grant children born overseas to Malaysian women and their foreign spouses the Malaysian citizenship.

This indeed is a wonderful piece of news that will not only help resolve the issue of stateless children, but also marks a major step forward in gender equality.

Although the issue of children born overseas to Malaysian women and their foreign spouses being unable to obtain Malaysian citizenship has commanded serious public attention only in more recent years, the problem has actually been around for many years. As a result, for decades these children have been denied the right they are entitled to.

While these foreign born children can apply for citizenship with the home ministry, the success rate is extremely low.

To fight for their children’s citizenship, several Malaysian mothers, along with non-governmental organization Family Frontiers, took their cases to the court in 2021, with the hope the court could help solve their problem.

They did see a ray of hope at one point, when the High Court ruled that children born overseas to Malaysian mothers and foreign fathers would automatically obtain Malaysian citizenship. However, the government appealed against the verdict which was subsequently overturned by Court of Appeal last August, dealing a major setback in these children’s continuous quest for citizenship.

But that was not the end of their fight. They later took their cases to the Federal Court, and the lawsuit is still ongoing.

As a matter of fact, other than legal channels, overseas born children still have an alternative way of getting their citizenship, namely through constitution amendment in parliament, which many believe is the best approach to settle the issue once and for all.

According to the Malaysian Constitution, children born overseas to Malaysian men and their foreign wives can automatically inherit the Malaysian citizenship, but not for Malaysian women and their foreign husbands.

Court of Appeal Judge Kamaludin Md Said the word “father” in the Constitution means biological father, which cannot be extended to include also mother or parent. Where this is concerned, a constitutional amendment should do the trick!

Home minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail and minister in the PM’s department (law and institutional reform) Azalina Othman Said have pointed out in a joint statement that the Constitution (Amendment) Bill 2023 will be tabled during the current parliament sitting having met the necessary legal requirements.

According to the statement, the word “father” in the Constitution will be replaced by the words “one of the parents,” entitling Malaysian mothers to the equal constitutional right.

As the issue involves constitutional amendment and citizenship, the bill must first secure the consent of the Conference of Rulers before it can be tabled in parliament, and can only be passed with the support of at least two-thirds of members of parliament.

The unity government led by Anwar Ibrahim has the support of 148 MPs, just reached the two-thirds majority threshold. This means that the bill needs not be supported by the opposition for official adoption.

That said, the stand of the opposition on this matter has been consistent with that of the government, as PN has also included the citizenship of foreign born children to Malaysian mothers in its election manifesto.

Where this issue is concerned, it is hoped that lawmakers on both sides of the political divide can put aside their differences and work hand in hand for the well-being of the rakyat.

We hope that through this constitutional amendment our politicians will display a high level of political maturity.

As a matter of fact, the issue of the citizenship of foreign born children should have been settled long ago and should not have been dragged on until 2023.

Male supremacy is an antiquated belief that is not only outdated today but also against universal human right.

On the issue of the citizenship of foreign born children, apparently only the men can pass down their right to citizenship to their children, not the women. And this is outright gender discrimination!

There is no denying that gender equality is still an unfulfilled aspiration to this day, and the venom of patriarchy is still very much lurking at every corner of our society. Even so, there is no stopping for our continued fight for gender equality.

It is believed that this constitution amendment bill will take us a step closer to gender equality and convey a positive message to the society.

These children are innocent. Their citizenship right must not be denied because of the discrimination we have against their mothers. They will not have a stable life here without citizenship or nationality.

To protect the right of the women and children, the constitutional amendment bill must be adopted in parliament this time.