Anwar to present constitutional amendments on child citizenship to Malay rulers

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim will present the proposed amendments to the Federal Constitution to the Conference of Malay Rulers soon, in a bid to solve the citizenship issue plaguing the overseas-born children of Malaysian women with foreign spouses.

He said this is to enable Malaysian mothers to be granted equal rights in the Federal Constitution.

"I will seek an audience (with the Rulers) and present the matter within this couple of days.

“The law stated that citizenship is given to children whose father is a citizen; it doesn't include the mother. So we want both parents to be included in the constitution... it's not fair to have just the father (stated in the constitution) but not the mother. That's all the matter to be presented," he told reporters after opening the International Malaysian Law Conference 2023 in Kuala Lumpur today.

Anwar said the proposed constitutional amendments are expected to be tabled in Parliament in September.

Earlier in his speech, Anwar said on the plight of stateless persons, the home ministry has received numerous citizenship requests under Article 15(A) of the Federal Constitution which underscore the urgent need for action.

He said several critical issues contributed to the challenges faced by stateless persons in Malaysia. 

"As for children born overseas to Malaysian mothers, efforts are already underway to resolve the issue of citizenship for them. 

"We will be tabling amendments to the Federal Constitution to replace the words 'whose father' in Part I and Part II of the Second Schedule with the words 'at least one of the parents'," he said.