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… Although he was born in Kuala Lumpur and has lived here all his life, Chang still holds a red identity card, which carries a permanent resident status. He began applying for citizenship in 1974 but so far he has not been successful.
He says he could not register as a citizen in 1957 because he did not have a birth certificate.
“I was born during the Japanese Occupation, so my parents were too scared to register my birth. Luckily, I was given a red IC, but after more than 15 years, I felt that it was not enough, so I applied for citizenship in 1974.”
As MCA president Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek highlighted recently, the number of persons waiting for their citizenship applications to be approved is huge. It was reported in this paper yesterday that 30,000 individuals are waiting for the outcome of their application, which were made between 2007 and 2009.
Among them are some 25,751 Chinese red IC holders. Between January and August this year, 7,674 fresh applications were submitted.
To help resolve the problem, the party’s central committee member and Deputy Home Minister Datuk Lee Chee Leong was given the task of identifying the reasons for the delay.
One main problem that has long been highlighted is lack of proper documents.
A reason identified for this is adoption: it was a common practice among Chinese parents who adopted (Malaysian-born) children to hide the child’s real identity, making it difficult for them to get their personal documents like MyKad later in life.
But, says Chiew Lian Keng who is coordinating the MCA’s citizenship task force, “Many of those waiting for their citizenship approval are old people who lived through the Japanese Occupation or the Emergency (1948-1960), so they have no papers; or their documents were lost or destroyed.”
Because of their experience during those turbulent times, he explains, many like Chang feel inferior and insecure without their citizenship.
During the Emergency and Japanese Occupation, being caught without your papers or with the “wrong” documents could mean prison and even execution, and many now needlessly worry about their safety when going out in public places.
Tracing the historical events, Chiew says many are in a fix today due to the commotion of those times and lack of access to information.
When Malaya achieved independence in 1957, everyone who was born here was given a year to take the citizenship oath.
But many who are seeking help from the task force today say they didn’t know that they had to do so at that time or had problems that made them miss the deadline.
It was the same situation when Singapore separated from Malaysia in 1965, he points out: “A year was given for people to decide if they wanted to stay in Malaysia or become Singaporeans. Still, many are now in limbo due to various reasons.”
Undeniably, Chiew concedes, there was a small group who wanted to go back to China and dragged their feet over their citizenship. By the time they resolved their dilemma, they had missed the deadline. “But this number is very small,” he stresses.
There are now five categories of citizenship application: wives of citizens; children of Malaysians aged below 21 years; application made under special circumstances for children aged below 21 years; those born before Merdeka; and applicants who are above 21 and have lived here as a permanent resident for more than 12 years.
The National Registration Department processed 32,927 applications for citizenship between 1997 and 2006.
Between 2007 and 2009, 29,677 applications were received, out of which 14,179 were approved while the remaining 15,498 applications are expected to be finalised by end of the year.
For many like Chang, who has been waiting for more than 35 years, the process is simply too slow and long.
It is not only red tape, says Chiew. One reason is that their applications keep getting rejected.
“Their applications have to go through various stages and many have come to expect rejection first. Usually, no reason is given for the rejection. Once rejected, they have to wait for two years to apply again.”
Chang has lost count of how many times he has submitted an application for citizenship.
“I took my Bahasa Malaysia test in 1974 and I passed but my first application was not approved. I applied again, and still it came back negative. I’ve been diligently re-applying.
“When I read the papers, I see that many people have received citizenship. I see many women crying and hugging the minister after getting their citizenship. So, how do you think I feel? At least, just tell me my status,” he says, showing his Bahasa Malaysia certificate.
NRD director-general Datuk Alwi Ibrahim feels that many applicants have the misconception that getting a Malaysian citizenship is their right.
“It is actually a reward and the highest award from the Government of Malaysia to the applicant,” he says, adding that even those born in Malaysia do not automatically have the claim to be Malaysian citizens under the operation of law.
“Every birth in Malaysia must be registered in the NRD and the citizenship status is based on their parents’ nationality at birth.”
Alwi is sympathetic towards those who were unsuccessful in their applications but laments the public’s lack of understanding of the process.
“Most people do not understand that the NRD does not have the authority to approve their citizenship applications. They need to know and understand that there are processes that the applications need to go through before the decision can be made by the Home Minister.”
The process, he explains, is long as the Government has to be thoroughly sure that the applicant is highly deserving of Malaysian citizenship. They also need to prove that they can contribute to the country as well as show their loyalty and not bring any harm or danger to it.
One aspect that many are not aware of is that existing laws and mechanisms have been made easier for applicants aged 50 and above. They no longer need to sit for a written Bahasa Malaysia test and only have to attend an interview in which their understanding of the national language and the Federal Constitution is tested.
But, says Chiew, most of the time the questions asked in the interview are difficult.
“Sometimes you get questions like ‘What is the full name of the second Sultan of Terengganu?’ I don’t think even you or I can answer that, what more an old person like Chang.”
Alwi points out that despite the challenges, the NRD and the ministry have cleared all the application backlogs.
“Currently, we are processing applications from 2007 to 2010. All applications prior to 2007 have been processed and the results are out.
“The results for 2007, 2008 and 2009 applications will be issued by end of this year while those for 2010 applications will be issued by 2012.”
While most understand the load faced by the NRD, the delay has taken a toll on this batch of pre-Merdeka generation and their families, says Chiew.
Many are so disheartened that they have simply refused to appeal when their applications are rejected. The problems they face, meanwhile, have discouraged those who have yet to apply for citizenship.
“These are old people. Many are over 60 and it is tough for them to go back and forth to the NRD. After so many years, all they want is to belong to the place they call home.”
Lorry driver Yong, 71, had almost given up hope of dying a Malaysian when he received his citizenship recently.
“The delay was affecting my family. Every time the topic came up in my house, tempers blew up. It was very stressful,” he recalls.
There are many who accuse these applicants of being too demanding, says Chang.
“It is not that we feel entitled to Malaysian citizenship. But I was born here, I grew up and work here, and my family is here. That is why I want to be a Malaysian citizen.”
For many, says Chiew, it is also a matter of survival.
“As PR, they are not eligible for free medical services or the subsidies provided for senior citizens at Government hospitals. They are also not eligible for other incentives provided to retirees.”
Sarita A, whose mother applied more than five times before she got her citizenship, says everything is more expensive for a red IC holder. These include hospital bills, passport and other travel costs and even entry to some places.
“My mother was very heartbroken and nearly gave up. She always said she could not go back to India because she does not know India now and she has nobody there. We are her only family,” she says.
Her mother does not only feel secure now but also relieved that she does not have to burden her children.
Although Sarita is grateful to the Government, she feels the process could have been faster.
“I felt they could have done better, especially since many are waiting anxiously to become citizens of this country.”
Hence, many were overjoyed when Dr Chua recently proposed that red IC holders aged 60 years and above with children who are citizens be granted citizenship automatically.
That will definitely help clear the NRD backlog, says Chiew.
For those like Chang, it will certainly make a difference.
“I can get cheaper and better medical service,” he says with a smile.
“And Merdeka Day will be happy and meaningful again.”
Fifteen year old Citra Dorai was born in a prison in Alor Setar and her knowledge about the circumstances surrounding her birth is rather vague.
She has been illiterate all her life as she does not have a birth certificate or an identity card which makes it impossible for her to register for any school.
Her mother died recently and her father has left her and two other siblings in the care of an aunt, and Citra (left) is totally uncertain of her future.
“I want to be like everyone else, to go to school, and to have something to do in the future,” she said, teary-eyed.
Citra, is among 40-odd stateless persons who turned up at the Human Rights Party’s office in Perai today, to fill in their national registration forms.
More than 20 children, with ages ranging from two to 15 years, were accompanied by their equally stateless parents, to try and reverse their situation by registering their plight.
The effort is part of the HRP’s national campaign to assist stateless persons, as most of them come from the Indian community.
Citra is also part of the 150,000 Malaysians who were born and bred in the country but who continues to suffer as stateless persons for various reasons ranging from not having parents’ with citizenship to refusal to follow suit when a spouse or parent converts to Islam.Disappointing meet
On Aug 13, HRP leaders met with NRD officers in Putrajaya, but came home feeling disappointed that the officers gave the impression that the problem was not as serious as they had made it out to be, said the party’s national advisor N. Ganesan.
“But we have proven our point, in just a month, without even a campaign, only word by mouth, we have managed to gather some 40 stateless people in this office,” he said.
“We want the NRD to take ownership of this problem and try to resolve this issue; it cannot deny that this is a big problem,” Ganesan (right) added.
Ganesan, a lawyer by profession, reiterated that what has been constitutionally guaranteed has been systematically and procedurally denied to the poor and vulnerable.
“This has contributed further to their marginalisation and continuing dispossession from mainstream Malaysia,” he added.
Meanwhile, the NRD has responded to the allegations by stating that the mobile registration program known as MyDaftar has been travelling to several Tamil schools and Indian estates to register undocumented children this year.
Its public relations officer Janisiah Mohd Noor stated in an email reply, that for cases of mixed marriage sans conversion, the matter should be referred to the appropriate religious department for more clarification.
She also stressed that the parents must be in legal wedlock to be registered as the child’s parent.
Janisiah claimed that the main reason for this statelessness plaguing the poor Malaysian Indians is due to their ignorance of law, unregistered marriages, and domestic problems.
Ganesan said the forms provided by the NRD was complicated that even an educated, un-marginalised middle class person would find a daunting task to fill in all their particulars.
“Please be reminded that these people with the stateless problems are from the working class; everyday they go to the NRD and are rejected due to incomplete forms, they lose a day’s wage,” he said.
“They have to return again and again before they get their forms rights and for many of these working class people, they simply cannot afford the time, so they let things continue to hang,” he added.
So, we can see HRP’s argument that process is complicated due the the forms. Coupled with long waiting time, well, you get unsolved problems. NRD doesn’t get involved in conversion issues so that another hurdle the folks have to deal separately. While in the earlier article, the focus is on elderly folks, the one above shows the importance of identity document in order to pursue education beyond primary school.
Also note that HRP says citizenship is guaranteed under constitution while NRD says its a reward, depending on the nationality of the parents.
