PETALING JAYA: Wanita MCA has welcomed the Cabinet’s agreement to amend the Federal Constitution so that children born abroad to Malaysian mothers will have the automatic right to Malaysian citizenship.
Its chairperson Wong You Fong said this was an issue, which Wanita MCA together with various civil society groups had long struggled for.
“As this uphill battle has finally borne fruition, this is a major progress in the pursuit of gender equality in Malaysia.
“There should never have been any barrier at all for Malaysian women to enjoy equal rights as Malaysian men, and this includes the right of citizenship conferment to children born overseas by Malaysian mothers married to non-Malaysian fathers,” she said.
She added that on many occasions, Wanita MCA had consistently conveyed its clear and unflinching position on various issues be it through official statements or proposals in the Dewan Rakyat over the matter.
She said the women’s wing of MCA had proposed to add the word “or mother” after the word “father” in Article 1(c) in Part II of the Second Schedule, or to directly modify the word to read “parents” to enshrine equal rights for Malaysian citizens in handing over citizenship to their newborns irrespective if they are men or women.
“At present, more than 150 countries across the globe have amended their laws giving male and female citizens the equal right to confer their nationality to their offsprings.
“Malaysia remains among only 25 countries with discriminatory legislation against women and this is totally unacceptable, more so, in modern times,” she said, adding that Cabinet’s announcement was welcomed and appreciated.
She said Malaysia was about to herald in a major breakthrough on this issue.
“This major leap in ensuring gender equality in our country bodes well for a progressive Malaysia and serves the reform agenda of Malaysia Madani,” she said.