KUALA LUMPUR – MPs who disagree with the constitutional amendments that will deny automatic citizenship to foundlings should abstain from voting on the bill, a civil society group has suggested.
Noting strong opposition against the amendments from civil society, government backbenchers and the Human Rights Commission (Suhakam), Projek Sama urged MPs “to protect the Federal Constitution from rushed amendments”.
“If any MP can’t bring himself or herself to oppose it, then they must not be part of the ‘yes’ vote. This is a justified occasion for backbench disobedience,” it said in a statement today.
“No one should be blind supporters of such amendments, nor the Parliament a mere rubber stamp.”
The group welcomed the particular amendment that is progressive in granting citizenship to overseas-born children of Malaysian mothers married to foreign spouses, but said the other amendments to remove automatic citizenship from vulnerable groups are “regressive” and have far reaching implications.
These amendments to confer citizenship by “operation of law” or through registration will worsen statelessness among abandoned babies, children born to those without identity documents and whose marriages are not registered, and those born out of wedlock to a Malaysian father and foreign absent mother.
Other groups who could be affected are adopted children and stateless refugees.
Projek Sama said instead of rushing these amendments through Parliament, the government should produce a Green Paper (preliminary report) or White Paper to MPs on the contentious amendments.
Two days ago, prominent lawyer and human rights activist Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan said Pakatan Harapan should free its MPs from having to obey their parties’ whips when the amendments are put to a vote. She said lawmakers should vote according to their conscience on such a matter.
Projek Sama today said the government should first present facts and figures to convince the public.
“A rushed bill may be more damaging than just being a placebo, with unintended consequences
including denying citizenship to some stateless natives in Sabah and Sarawak, and causing grave cruelty to abandoned babies nationwide.”
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail have said the bill will be tabled in the current Parliament sitting, later this month.
However, Projek Sama said that tabling the bill for first reading this month, and then only to debate and vote on it in the next sitting, would damage the government’s credibility if it is withdrawn due to backlash. – March 13, 2024