HOME Minister Hamzah Zainuddin’s warning to get the public to register their marriages to ensure their children are not denied citizenship is ignorant, callous and inhumane, legal group Lawyers for Liberty said.

Its director Zaid Malek said Hamzah is unlawfully punishing innocent children for a bureaucratic and red-tape problem like non-registration of marriages.

He accused the home minister of conveniently shifting the burden of ensuring that those entitled get their citizenship to the public.

“It is the duty of government to ensure that every qualified person is registered as a citizen and is not denied citizenship for petty bureaucratic reasons,” the lawyer said in a statement today.

“It is plainly unlawful and contrary to the constitution to deny citizenship to a child born to at least one parent who is a Malaysian simply because the marriage was not registered.

“For every child who is entitled to citizenship but remains stateless, the fault lies with the Home Ministry and not the parents.

“It is the duty of government to ensure that every qualified person is registered as a citizen and given the necessary identification papers. This is the reason we pay taxes and the Home Ministry is given such massive resources,” he added.

Hamzah had previously said the government has no problems issuing citizenship certificates to applicants if they can produce valid marriage documents.

The home minister claimed this was done in accordance with existing laws in the country.

In the context of law, Zaid claimed that article 14 of the Federal Constitution guarantees citizenship for those who meet the criteria under Part II of the Second Schedule.

Zaid said the granting of citizenship to those entitled is a right and not a privilege to be “awarded” at the discretion of the government as claimed by the home minister.

“We reiterate that issues of marriage registration are an administrative problem at most and easily rectified.

“It can never be the reason why children should be deprived of citizenship. The effects are catastrophic for them as they will be barred from access to healthcare, education, and have difficulty gaining employment. 

“Instead of blaming the public, the home minister should ensure that registration of marriages be eased, and that any issues that arise be resolved swiftly. Proper guidelines should be in place so that the correct information can be accessed by members of the public,” he said.

Zaid urged Hamzah to look at the standard operating procedure and guidelines in the National Registration Department and ensure that they comply with the constitution and abide with the latest court decisions on issues of citizenship, and not just irresponsibly pass the buck to the public.

He said the massive failures of successive governments over decades has led to hundreds of thousands of stateless persons in Malaysia, who are actually entitled to citizenship.

Aside from the human suffering endured by the stateless, it also deprives the country of a huge section of citizens who could contribute to the economy and nation-building, Zaid said.

“Instead, they are relegated to the fringes of society,” he remarked.

Zaid said Hamzah and his ministry’s approach over how the citizenship issue is handled has further perpetuate and worsened the problem. – July 16, 2022.