Compassion needed in handling issue of citizenship

IT is gratifying to note that Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail is prepared to engage with NGOs and civil society organisations to discuss the proposed amendments to the Constitution pertaining to citizenship.

Listening to another point of view is always a sure and judicious way of arriving at good conclusions or decisions regarding any issue, however controversial it may initially seem to be.

It is also good news that the issue of citizenship for children born overseas to Malaysian mothers has been settled. Every child has the inherent right to a nationality as recognised by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Depriving them of this right will leave them vulnerable to discrimination and exclusion from basic amenities like education and healthcare.

Stateless children are also vulnerable to exploitation, including human trafficking, forced labour and child marriage. Legal documentation serves as a crucial safeguard against such abuses.

As such, we hope the Home Minister will also be sympathetic to the pleas of literally thousands of children who are currently stateless. Most of them, though born here, are without proper documentation to apply for citizenship.

It was no fault of theirs that they are stateless, hence it behoves the government to handle their cases with empathy, sympathy and compassion. We should consider them as human assets for the country and treat them accordingly.

The Cabinet should seriously reconsider some proposals that have been approved. This includes Section 19B of Part III of the Second Schedule relating to the conferment of citizenship rights by operation of law to foundlings and stateless children.

Treating stateless children with compassion is not just a matter of morality. It is a fundamental responsibility of society.

Currently, these children are living in constant fear of being detained or deported. It’s a harrowing existence that no child should ever have to endure.

A society is judged by how it treats its weakest members. Governments have a duty to protect the rights of all children within the nation’s borders, regardless of nationality.

So let us stand together in solidarity with stateless children and offer them the compassion, comfort and support that they so desperately need and deserve.

TAN SRI LEE LAM THYE

Kuala Lumpur