PUTRAJAYA, March 10 — Malaysian mothers’ overseas-born children born before the Federal Constitution’s amended citizenship laws were passed last year are now entitled to citizenship by way of registration.
This follows a settlement between advocacy group Family Frontiers and the Malaysian government today ahead of a scheduled hearing over a constitutional challenge involving Malaysian citizenship that has gone on for at least four years.
The settlement, in the form of a consent order, was endorsed by a five-member bench chaired by Chief Justice Tun Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat at the Federal Court earlier today.
Per the consent order, a child below the age of 18 born overseas to a Malaysian mother and foreign father before the coming into effect of the Constitution (Amendment) Bill 2024 passed in Parliament can now apply for citizenship under Article 15(2) of the Federal Constitution.
Subject to Article 26(1) and compliance with the application procedure stipulated under Article 15(2) of the Federal Constitution, alongside the required supporting documents, the child will be registered as a Malaysian based on existing terms provided under the aforementioned amendment.
Per the latest citizenship law amendments, Malaysian mothers would be able to enjoy the same rights as Malaysian fathers in passing down automatic citizenship to their children born after the non-retroactive legislation comes into effect.
As for today’s settlement, this means the latest constitutional amendments will also now apply retroactively to overseas-born children under the age of 18 who have already been born to Malaysian mothers before the Bill becomes law by way of a government gazette.
The consent order also provided for the Malaysian citizenship given to the six affected mothers’ overseas-born children in the constitutional challenge to remain unchanged. The mothers are named as appellants in the case.
During today’s hearing, lawyer Gurdial Singh Nijar who appeared for the appellants, informed the bench that parties had agreed to the settlement following a series of ‘intense’ negotiations.
“We have reached agreeable terms in which to settle this matter and the appeal is withdrawn,” he said, with senior federal counsel Liew Horng Bin later affirming the matter.
Also on the panel hearing the appeal were Justices Tan Sri Abang Iskandar Abang Hashim, Tan Sri Nallini Pathmanathan, Datuk Nordin Hassan and Datuk Hanipah Farikullah.
The court then recorded the consent judgment with no order as to costs.
Family Frontiers and six affected Malaysian mothers had in December 2020 filed the court challenge together.
This has been a long drawn-out case, with Family Frontiers first winning in the High Court in September 2021, with the judge deciding that Malaysian mothers’ overseas-born children are entitled to Malaysian citizenship automatically.
But the Court of Appeal in a 2-1 decision in August 2022 overturned the High Court decision, and the Federal Court in December 2022 allowed Family Frontiers to pursue its appeal.
While their appeal was ongoing, the Malaysian government on March 25, 2024 tabled a proposed law in Parliament, with the aim of changing the Federal Constitution’s citizenship laws to enable Malaysian mothers’ overseas-born children to automatically be Malaysians.
The Dewan Rakyat on October 17, 2024 and the Dewan Negara on December 3, 2024 voted in favour of and passed the proposed law, also known as the Constitution (Amendment) Bill 2024.
But to become law, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong must approve or grant royal assent to the amendment to the Federal Constitution, and it also has to be published in a government gazette.
At the time of writing, Malay Mail’s checks of the Malaysian government’s Federal Legislation Portal shows that the new law has yet to be gazetted.
Outside court, Family Frontiers’ exco member Suriani Kempe said today’s settlement provided Malaysian mothers with much-needed relief and additional security that the constitutional amendment did not address.
Gurdial said that this settlement was a “great gift to women” following last week’s International Women’s Day celebration and which served as a conclusion to the dismantling of decades-long gender discrimination in Malaysia.
