The court, in dismissing the government's appeal, says the fact that her biological parents are unidentified does not rebut the presumption under Section 19B of the Federal Constitution.
Key takeaways
A Court of Appeal panel upheld a woman’s Malaysian citizenship, ruling that a child abandoned at birth is presumed to be born to a permanently resident mother, and ordered the government to pay RM10,000 in costs.
- The court applied Section 19B of the Constitution to grant citizenship to a woman abandoned in 1989.
- The government failed to rebut the statutory presumption, leading to a RM10,000 cost award.
- The woman had been raised by adoptive parents and had a temporary ID stating she was not a citizen before the ruling.
Summarised automatically by AI from the original article by Free Malaysia Today. AI can make mistakes, so check the original for details.
Justice Firuz Jaffril said Section 19B must be interpreted broadly to protect newborn children abandoned by mothers whose identities are unknown.PUTRAJAYA: The Court of Appeal has dismissed the government's appeal against a ruling declaring a 37-year-old woman, who was abandoned shortly after birth, a Malaysian citizen by operation of law.
A three-member panel chaired by Justice Firuz Jaffril, sitting with Justices Ismail Ibrahim and Dean Wayne Daly, also ordered the government to pay the woman RM10,000 in costs.
In its judgment, the court upheld a High Court finding that the woman qualified for citizenship under Article 14(1)(b), read together with Section 1(a) of Part II and Section 19B of Part III of the Second Schedule to the Federal Constitution.
