KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 1 — After waiting their whole lives, a Perak family can now call themselves Malaysians, and no longer have to be someone who does not belong to any country in the world.
Kamaladevi Kanniappan, 47, indicated that she, her two adult children in their 20s, and her three grandchildren can finally dare to even have dreams about a better future.
“Our dream is simple, but it means everything. We want to live a normal life without fear and without shame. We want to be able to plan for tomorrow,” she told Malay Mail via her lawyer Shugan Raman.
“Now my children can dream of stable work, further studies, and secure a safe place to stay.
“Now my grandchildren can dream of finishing school, going to college if they want, and becoming anything they choose. Before this, even basic dreams felt impossible because we were always blocked,” she said.
“For me, my dream is to see them live with confidence. To see them stand proudly and say, this is my country, and I am Malaysian.
“I also dream of peace. To go to sleep without worrying what will happen to my family, and without feeling like we are always one step away from being pushed aside,” she added.
After much heartbreak, now we belong
Kamaladevi and her family had endured many hardships in life because of their stateless status, which was passed down the generations as they could not legally marry without a Malaysian identity card.
But with the High Court’s May 2024 and the Court of Appeal’s November 2025 declarations that Kamaladevi and all her stateless family members are all Malaysians, they can now say they belong in Malaysia — the country they were born in and have lived in their whole lives.
“I feel extremely happy and relieved. After struggling my entire life, my family has finally been recognised as Malaysians.
“For so long, I lived without proof that my children and I belong here. Now, for the first time, I can hold that certainty in my hands,” she said.
Kamaladevi still remembered the many difficult moments where she “felt my heart break”.
“When I heard people say even foreigners can get an IC, I would go home and cry, because I could not understand why my own family was still left behind.
“Many times I wanted to give up. But I kept praying to God my whole life to help me and my family. I went to so many people looking for help. Some promised they would help, but nothing changed, and my fate remained the same for years,” she said.
“When you live like this, even simple things become heavy. Going to a clinic is a struggle because it is expensive. Everything feels uncertain. You start to feel useless, like you are not able to give your children what they deserve.
“Today, I feel like a huge weight has been lifted,” she said, sharing her thoughts after it was confirmed that the Malaysian government did not appeal against the Court of Appeal ruling that declared the family as Malaysians.
Missed opportunities, but being Malaysians a life-changer now
Kamaladevi had Malaysian maternal grandparents, but she and her siblings became stateless, as their stateless mother Letchimee and Malaysian father were unable to register their marriage.
Kamaladevi’s father died just months before she turned 10, and her family then faced severe financial hardships.
Because of her stateless status, Kamaladevi was unable to get a proper education and started working at age 12 as a rubber tapper.
All her children inherited her stateless status as she could not register her marriage with her Malaysian husband, who died in 2009 of cancer after 13 years of marriage.
“For me personally, I feel it is too late to dream for myself the way I once did. I am older now, and I do not have the same strength to start over, to earn more, to buy a house.
“But I am deeply grateful because this changes everything for my children and grandchildren,” she said of their new official status as Malaysians.
“My children had the skills and the ability, but because of our situation, they could not study properly and we could not afford what we needed to pay.
“I struggled so much, and I could not give them the opportunities they deserved. Now they can finally live like they belong. They can apply for proper jobs and build stable lives without fear,” she said.
Two of Kamaladevi’s sons (R and E) had died by suicide due to what the family believes was the weight of hardship due to statelessness.
Because of their stateless status, Kamaladevi’s 27-year-old daughter T could not register for the Form Three examination PMR examination, while Kamaladevi’s 24-year-old son M had to stop schooling just two months into Form One.
Both T and M – who lost their father at age 11 and eight – had to start working at a young age and could only take on odd jobs or menial jobs.
T’s three children – aged 10, eight and three – are also stateless, as she too could not register her marriage with her Malaysian husband.
According to Kamaladevi’s lawyer Shugan, her three grandchildren previously faced difficulties enrolling in public primary schools due to their stateless status.
While her grandchildren were eventually allowed to register as students, they had to pay certain fees and buy their own textbooks.
“Most importantly, my grandchildren can finally go to school with the same support as other Malaysian children,” she said, referring to how Malaysian students enjoy free textbooks and free education at government schools.
“With citizenship, they can study without being left out, complete their education and grow up with choices.
“That is what I want. I want them to have a future where they do not feel less than others,” she said.
Don’t give up on hope if you are stateless
“I want to tell Malaysians that there are good people in this country who will help, and that kindness can change a life.
“Please do not look down on families like mine. Many of us have lived here for generations, working hard and trying our best, but we were trapped by a system we could not fight alone.
“If you are going through what my family went through, please do not lose hope. Even when you feel there is no way forward, keep trying, keep asking for help, and keep praying,” Kamaladevi said.
Kamaladevi expressed her gratitude to Parti Sosialis Malaysia chairman Dr Michael Jeyakumar and her two lawyers, describing them as good people “who are willing to help and fight for families like ours.”
“I will never forget what they did for me and my family. They helped us when we felt invisible, and they helped without expecting anything in return,” she said.
Dr Jeyakumar was the one who had brought the family’s plight to the lawyers’ attention, and she spoke highly of his efforts to help her family when they had nobody.
Shugan confirmed that he and lawyer New Sin Yew funded all the costs out of their own pocket, including court filing fees, expenses for travel to and accommodation in Taiping, Perak for court proceedings.
The two of them did the legal work pro bono without funding from anyone, with Shugan saying: “We just wanted to help out.”
Now that Kamaladevi has won her years-long struggle to be a Malaysian, she wants to help others: “I will also do what I can in my capacity to help others like me. I know the struggle my family went through for decades. I do not want anyone to feel alone in this journey.”
Recommended reading:
- Landmark ruling: Court declares three generations in Perak family Malaysians, affirms stateless persons’ right to marry
- High Court: Stateless persons can legally marry in Malaysia, NRD shouldn't refuse just because ‘no IC’
- A Perak family’s suffering: Three generations, all stateless, go to court to be Malaysians
