KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 3 — Doris Jones, the UK-based lawyer from Sabah who has been pushing for the Borneo state’s secession from Malaysia, has said she is ready to face sedition charges at home if the federal government will only renew her passport.

But Jones, who is currently wanted by Malaysian police for her secession campaign, also said she will have no problems staying on in the UK without her passport because she is a permanent resident there, The Star reported today.

“I am not running away from anything”, she was quoted as saying.

The 45-year-old was reported saying she had intended to fly back to Sabah later this month but was unable to because her passport could not be renewed,

She claimed an immigration officer at the Malaysian High Commission in London told her on September 30 that he could not renew her passport, which expires this month.

In February, police announced they have a warrant of arrest for Jones under her registered name as Doris Yapp Kim Yuon, 45, for sedition. Her last known address was listed as in the Federal Territory of Labuan.

Sabah police commissioner Datuk Jalaluddin Abdul Rahman reportedly said that the local police would seek Interpol’s help to find Jones in the UK where she is said to be residing.

However, British law does not recognise the crime for which she is wanted in Malaysia.

Since then however, the police have conceded they are not able to extradite Jones and can only act against her when she returns to the country.

Jones has repeatedly denied being contacted by Malaysian authorities or Interpol in the UK.