After four-year wait, Malaysia-born teen finally gets legal recognition as a citizen

Malay Mail
by JOSEPH SIPALAN

High Court ordered the federal government to recognise him as a Malaysian citizen and issue him a MyKad by the end of this year.

Judge Datuk Hue Siew Kheng ruled that the federal authorities had acted unfairly in rejecting two earlier applications by Navin Moorthy to be granted his citizenship, describing it as “unjust and too harsh”.

She said there is no provision under Article 15A of the Federal Constitution that expressly states that the marriage of a child’s parents must be officially registered to qualify for citizenship, as claimed by the National Registration Department and the Home Ministry.

Hue added that because there is no clear definition of the “special circumstances” outlined under Article 15A, it should be interpreted to cover the various protections afforded to children by Malaysia’s ratification of the United Nations’ Convention on the Rights of the Child.

“The primary consideration should be what is best for the child,” she said in her judgement, adding that there are several statutes in force in the country that abide by the convention’s requirement that puts the welfare of children as a priority.

Hue also rebuked the authorities for having “glossed over” the fact that a Malaysian passport — which was issued to Navin — can only be issued to citizens, and that the approval of the teen’s passport amounted to an implicit recognition of his citizenship.

In view of the authorities’ discrepancies, Hue ordered the National Registration Department (NRD) to immediately recognise the boy’s citizenship and to issue him a MyKad within one month from today.

Hue also ordered the NRD to pay RM8,000 in costs.

When met outside the court, Navin said he was overjoyed that he can now proudly say without any doubt that he is a Malaysian citizen.

“I feel very happy. It’s been four years of waiting... some people said I was a foreigner, but now I can prove that I am not a foreigner,” said the 16-year-old.

Navin, through his father Moorthy Ramiah Pillai, filed a civil suit last December against the director-general of the NRD, the Home Ministry, as it oversees the NRD, and the federal government over his citizenship status.

In his submissions, the teenager claimed that he was initially issued a birth certificate that listed him as a citizen when he was born on July 8, 1998, but found that his status was later changed to “Bukan Warganegara” or non-citizen.

Navin, who was born to a Malaysian father and Filipino mother, is also listed as a citizen in his Malaysian passport issued by the Immigration Department.

His businessman father, Moorthy, had applied twice with the NRD for his son’s citizenship, but claims that both applications were rejected by the Home Ministry.