{"id":63504,"date":"2021-07-16T09:27:08","date_gmt":"2021-07-16T01:27:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.usim.edu.my\/uncategorized-ms\/addressing-statelessness-in-malaysia-new-hope-and-remaining-challenges\/"},"modified":"2022-10-14T07:02:34","modified_gmt":"2022-10-13T23:02:34","slug":"addressing-statelessness-in-malaysia-new-hope-and-remaining-challenges","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.usim.edu.my\/ms\/berita\/faces-of-usim-ms\/addressing-statelessness-in-malaysia-new-hope-and-remaining-challenges\/","title":{"rendered":"Addressing Statelessness in Malaysia : New Hope and Remaining Challenges"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"fusion-fullwidth fullwidth-box fusion-builder-row-1 fusion-flex-container hundred-percent-fullwidth non-hundred-percent-height-scrolling\" style=\"background-color: rgba(255,255,255,0);background-position: center center;background-repeat: no-repeat;border-width: 0px 0px 0px 0px;border-color:#eae9e9;border-style:solid;\" ><div class=\"fusion-builder-row fusion-row fusion-flex-align-items-flex-start\" style=\"width:calc( 100% + 0px ) !important;max-width:calc( 100% + 0px ) !important;margin-left: calc(-0px \/ 2 );margin-right: calc(-0px \/ 2 );\"><div class=\"fusion-layout-column fusion_builder_column fusion-builder-column-0 fusion_builder_column_1_1 1_1 fusion-flex-column fusion-flex-align-self-flex-start fusion-column-no-min-height\"><div class=\"fusion-column-wrapper fusion-flex-justify-content-flex-start fusion-content-layout-column\" style=\"background-position:left top;background-repeat:no-repeat;-webkit-background-size:cover;-moz-background-size:cover;-o-background-size:cover;background-size:cover;padding: 0px 0px 0px 0px;\"><style type='text\/css'>.reading-box-container-1 .element-bottomshadow:before,.reading-box-container-1 .element-bottomshadow:after{opacity:0.10;}<\/style><div class=\"fusion-reading-box-container reading-box-container-1\" style=\"margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:84px;\"><div class=\"reading-box element-bottomshadow\" style=\"background-color:#f6f6f6;border-width:1px;border-color:#f6f6f6;border-top-width:3px;border-top-color:var(--primary_color);border-style:solid;\"><div class=\"reading-box-additional\">\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">In Conversation with Dr.\u00a0Rodziana\u00a0Mohamed Razali, Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Syariah and Law, USIM and Research Affiliate, Centre for Human Rights and Legal Pluralism, McGill University<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">In 2018, a year after completing her PhD, Dr.\u00a0Rodziana\u00a0Mohamed Razali, Senior Lecturer at the Faculty of Syariah and Law, USIM, was honored as one of the\u00a0two\u00a0recipients of the\u00a0prestigious\u00a0Arnold &amp;\u00a0Blema\u00a0Steinberg Post-Doctoral Fellowship in International Migration Law &amp; Policy (2018\/19) by McGill University, Canada. She shares her experience\u00a0of\u00a0being\u00a0the Steinberg research fellow\u00a0working on her research on childhood statelessness and her thoughts\u00a0and hope\u00a0over the subject\u00a0of statelessness and legal identity, her central area of research expertise.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><div class=\"fusion-clearfix\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"fusion-text fusion-text-1\"><p><span class=\"fusion-dropcap dropcap\">Q1<\/span> <b><span data-contrast=\"none\">Please describe your experience undertaking and completing your fellowship with the Centre for Human Rights and Legal Pluralism at McGill University from 2018 to 2019. How has this valuable opportunity impacted you personally and your career?<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">Coming from the developing world, the Arnold and\u00a0Blema\u00a0Steinberg fellowship has\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">made it possible for scholars like me to impact the internationalization of our higher education by tapping into and experiencing with cutting-edge resources and networking opportunities with intellectually robust academic as well as professional communities from North America and around the world.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">A year-stint spent at the Centre for Human Rights and Legal Pluralism in a multi-cultural legal and social landscape was a landmark phase in my career. It provided me with multiple platforms to highlight regional and country contexts on legal, social and\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">development challenges associated with childhood statelessness, via a series of<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0seminars, lectures, and dialogues organized by the Centre and other departments at McGill University.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Working under the supervision and mentorship of a world class senior academic expert in migration law and policy, Professor\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">Fran\u00e7ois\u00a0Cr\u00e9peau<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0(the Hans and Tamar Chair in Public International Law) and the inspiring leadership of\u00a0the Centre\u2019s Co Director,\u00a0Professor Nandini Ramanujam has profoundly stimulated a new way to look at and approach things and diversely enriched my foresight<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0and professional interests.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">With all the opportunities and network of support I was able to receive through this fellowship, my research project has culminated in a book manuscript addressing prevention of childhood statelessness, two published journal papers, and various seminar papers presented in Canada as well as Europe.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Within less than a year of returning to my home country and institution, I was already working as a principal investigator of a research project that seeks to review aspects of migration law and policy governing low-skilled foreign workers under a grant sponsored by the Malaysian government and another research project funded by a United\u00a0Nations\u00a0agency on access to birth registration for children affected by migration. I am grateful to have been part of this prestigious fellowship and will certainly continue to treasure the personal and professional bonds established with the wonderful McGill community and other colleagues in Canada.<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u202f<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><div class=\"fusion-separator fusion-full-width-sep\" style=\"align-self: center;margin-left: auto;margin-right: auto;margin-top:20px;margin-bottom:20px;width:100%;\"><div class=\"fusion-separator-border sep-single sep-dashed\" style=\"border-color:#e0dede;border-top-width:1px;\"><\/div><\/div><div class=\"fusion-text fusion-text-2\"><p><span class=\"fusion-dropcap dropcap\">Q2<\/span> <b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Can you tell us how did you get interested in the statelessness issue in Malaysia\u00a0and\u00a0choose\u00a0the said\u00a0topic for your PhD thesis? How did you expand on this topic in the research that your pursued under the fellowship?<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">First and foremost,\u00a0I\u00a0knew I\u00a0wanted to\u00a0explore\u00a0an area of research\u00a0that\u00a0would\u00a0allow me to positively contribute to humanity where there are compelling gaps\u00a0in the work of scholars.\u00a0I\u00a0also\u00a0wanted to research a problem that affects my region\u00a0and\u00a0my own country.\u00a0My conscience convinced me that that could position\u00a0me better\u00a0in terms of\u00a0appreciating\u00a0the contexts as well as the dynamics of the research\u00a0issues, with the hope that my research and the possible solutions that it might generate are strongly grounded in such\u00a0awareness and insights.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">It\u00a0struck me to learn\u00a0of\u00a0how\u00a0statelessness and\u00a0non-belonging to any state could be linked to many intersecting phenomena such as refugee flows and other\u00a0forms\u00a0of migration, poverty,\u00a0discrimination\u00a0and state succession, among others. Figures that were quoted by the media suggested between tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands\u00a0of\u00a0people\u00a0affected by\u00a0statelessness\u00a0or at risk of statelessness\u00a0in Malaysia.\u00a0We are just behind Myanmar and Thailand in terms of the scale of the problem, which\u00a0speaks to the breadth and intensity of the problem\u00a0region-wide.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Despite the magnitude of the problem,\u00a0I found research and\u00a0conversations about\u00a0statelessness were\u00a0somehow\u00a0invisible\u00a0in the local academic and non-academic scenes. Speaking\u00a0of how the subject is treated in Malaysia, many tend to lump\u00a0stateless\u00a0with the wider category of undocumented and irregular migrants, which in turn adumbrates\u00a0statelessness\u00a0and feeds it into the common narratives around xenophobia and other anti-migrant sentiments.\u00a0 Some people whom I spoke\u00a0with\u00a0mistook\u00a0stateless\u00a0for refugees. Some politicians asserted that they do not exist in Malaysia, but at other times, made references\u00a0to, for instance, stateless children being unable to enter the Malaysian school system. There seems to be much confusion over who these people are and how they come to be\u00a0stateless or at risk of being stateless.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Driven by the goal of prevention and reduction of statelessness, I discovered prevention of childhood statelessness to be the specific area I wanted to dig into, as children\u00a0especially,\u00a0never deserve to be born stateless and to endure the plight of living without basic needs to accessible and affordable healthcare, education, liberty, and security of person.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Under the fellowship, I expanded the previous scope of research by looking at the\u00a0solution dimension to statelessness through a construction of a\u00a0framework of birth registration that is traditionally confined to host states as the duty bearers to\u00a0include\u00a0states of origin.\u00a0Where structural barriers stemming from ethnic identity politics, lack of political will and discrimination are widespread, the project\u00a0tapped\u00a0into context-specific tools employed by non-state actors such as international organizations, civil\u00a0societies\u00a0and private entities in overcoming barriers to access birth registration and possession of proof of legal identity. It evaluates the\u00a0standards of birth registration\u00a0with a view to exploring areas to strengthen the\u00a0nexus between birth registration and the acquisition and establishment of a legal identity,\u00a0including nationality<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><div class=\"fusion-separator fusion-full-width-sep\" style=\"align-self: center;margin-left: auto;margin-right: auto;margin-top:20px;margin-bottom:20px;width:100%;\"><div class=\"fusion-separator-border sep-single sep-dashed\" style=\"border-color:#e0dede;border-top-width:1px;\"><\/div><\/div><div class=\"fusion-text fusion-text-3\"><p><span class=\"fusion-dropcap dropcap\">Q3<\/span> <strong>Which area of law governing statelessness in Malaysia that you wish to see changes\u00a0on ?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">i.<\/span><\/b> <b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Immigration Law\u00a0<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The definition of the term \u2018prohibited immigrants\u2019 in the Immigration Act 1959\/63 that refers to people who are prohibited from entering the country ought to exclude refugees and stateless people. It is important to legally distinguish these people who seek protection from the larger cluster of\u00a0the so-called \u2018irregular\u2019\u00a0migrants\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">&#8211;<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0to avoid them from being subjected to punishment, harassment, and other mistreatment from both the authorities and members of the public.\u00a0Secondly,\u00a0the policy and law concerning labour and immigration should allow for a temporary legal status with the right to legally work, at the minimum, to persons identified as stateless as well as refugees. It would certainly help in terms of the\u00a0protection of such groups if the government could ratify the pertinent human rights conventions such as the 1951 Refugee Convention and the two 1954 and 1961 Statelessness Conventions.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">ii.\u00a0 Birth Registration and Marriage Registration<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">These two rights are interrelated and could magnify the risk of statelessness to children, especially those born\u00a0within\u00a0vulnerable and often marginalised groups of stateless, refugees, and undocumented. A birth certificate serves as proof of one\u2019s existence in the eyes of the law. It is needed to demonstrate the vital information of birthplace and parentage, the two criteria to determine\u00a0and assign\u00a0<\/span><br \/>\n<span data-contrast=\"auto\">one\u2019s nationality.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The international standards require that every birth should be recorded regardless of the immigration and status of one\u2019s parents. To make this possible, every marriage must be registered and recorded by the civil authority. Informal religious marriages can be a barrier to universal birth registration. Furthermore, marriage registration provides protection from undesirable implications for children and women. To provide awareness on the significance of marriage registration among the vulnerable refugee groups, the Faculty of Syariah and Law in collaboration with a local non-governmental organisation (NGO) known as Refugee Support Group co-organised a workshop on marriage management of the refugees in 2018, which was officiated by\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">the\u00a0ex-\u00a0OIC\u00a0Special Envoy for Myanmar,\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Tan Sri Syed Hamid Albar.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Without a legally recognised marriage, children born within it are technically assigned the status of \u2018illegitimate\u2019, and women as wives could suffer a host of human rights abuses without being able to legally enforce their rights, including matrimonial and property rights. Family unity including for deported,\u00a0repatriated\u00a0and resettled migrants, stateless, and refugees, can certainly be at stake without formal proof of birth registration and family relationship.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Malaysia is home to many refugees, the largest size of which is represented by\u00a0asylum seekers and refugees from Myanmar. The latest exodus in 2017 drove some 700,000 Rohingya refugees fleeing the country to its neighbours, primarily Bangladesh, Malaysia, and India\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">&#8211;<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0amid allegations of genocide.\u00a0At the moment, access to the\u00a0basic\u00a0rights\u00a0and livelihood\u00a0can be restricted if proof of one\u2019s legal residence and stay cannot be submitted\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">&#8211;<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0a barrier commonly faced by undocumented asylum seekers and migrants\u00a0in this country.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">iii.<\/span><\/b> <b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Reservations to Basic International Norms on Legal Identity\u00a0<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The country is party to both CRC and CEDAW, the two human rights conventions for the protection of children and women. But it still places reservations on\u00a0a number of\u00a0key provisions that are needed to ensure every child has a legal identity and is not discriminated against. Malaysia has committed itself to achieving SDG 2030 and is also among the UN Member States that has recently accepted the UN Global Compacts\u00a0on\u00a0Refugees and on\u00a0Migrants. In line with these global pledges calling for promotion of inclusion for development and for safe, regular and orderly migration, non-discrimination, and dignified return\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">&#8211;<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0the government\u00a0should\u00a0consider lifting its reservations to crucial provisions to protect against statelessness, such as Article 2 CRC on the right of every child not to be discriminated, Article 7 CRC on the rights of every child to be registered at birth and to acquire a nationality, and Article 9(2) CEDAW to ensure equality between men and women of their rights to pass on nationality to their children.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">In Canada, my focus\u00a0was\u00a0still on protection of children against statelessness, albeit with a heavier emphasis on its mitigation\/ solution dimension through an integrated system of birth and legal identity status,\u00a0including nationality. Countries in the Americas, including Canada and the United States are known for being countries with more open and lenient\u00a0immigration and\u00a0citizenship policies, which are favourable for a wider\u00a0and meaningful\u00a0inclusion of migrants and refugees.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559685&quot;:360,&quot;469777462&quot;:&#091;1964&#093;,&quot;469777927&quot;:&#091;0&#093;,&quot;469777928&quot;:&#091;1&#093;}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The regional human rights framework<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0in the American continent underscores the vital function of birth registration in securing children\u2019s right to their legal identity. Its regional jurisprudence has grown to support the universality of this right to every child without regards to migratory status. Beyond legal concepts, there is also so much to explore in terms of\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">interventions along paralegal services and advocacy, social mobilization, and digitization in removing barriers to birth registration in this region.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559685&quot;:360,&quot;469777462&quot;:&#091;1964&#093;,&quot;469777927&quot;:&#091;0&#093;,&quot;469777928&quot;:&#091;1&#093;}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">These are the aspects of best practices through cross-regional learning that my research\u00a0sought\u00a0to gather.\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The region\u2019s tolerant citizenship framework that upholds pluralism and diversity\u00a0came\u00a0under greater pressure for reform in the wake of discontent and opposition by\u00a0far-right\u00a0and anti-immigrant politics especially in the US. The legal-political climate made\u00a0the research experience more enriching and worthwhile, allowing one to observe and draw lessons from how other political, social, and academic movements critically respond to this contemporary polemic and debate around political membership and inclusion.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><div class=\"fusion-separator fusion-full-width-sep\" style=\"align-self: center;margin-left: auto;margin-right: auto;margin-top:20px;margin-bottom:20px;width:100%;\"><div class=\"fusion-separator-border sep-single sep-dashed\" style=\"border-color:#e0dede;border-top-width:1px;\"><\/div><\/div><div class=\"fusion-text fusion-text-4\"><p><span class=\"fusion-dropcap dropcap\">Q4<\/span> <b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">What do you think is the greatest opportunity and the most difficult challenge in terms of addressing statelessness in Malaysia today?<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559685&quot;:360,&quot;335559991&quot;:360}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Concerns over statelessness have gained steam at the turn of the century. UNHCR\u2019s global initiative better known as the #IBelong Campaign has contributed to a steady increase in the ratification of the statelessness conventions.\u00a0In light of\u00a0this positive trend, Malaysia has seen progress in terms of awareness and actions on the ground that engage multi-stakeholder approaches to document, register and assist undocumented people, such as the Indians of Tamil descent to apply for their birth registration and citizenship. Beyond this, much work remains to be done, including for the\u00a0stateless and\u00a0at-risk groups in Sabah\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">&#8211;<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0predominantly the\u00a0<\/span><i><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Bajau Laut<\/span><\/i><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0and other undocumented natives and migrant populations with uncertain nationality status\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">&#8211;<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0who have lived out their lives in the state for generations.\u00a0Having said that, it is hard to design intervention strategies without being able to have reliable estimates and baseline information of the\u00a0affected\u00a0populations. Mapping, data gathering, and data sharing need to be systematically arranged in such a way that leads to better predictability and evidence-based policies at the domestic level,\u00a0supported by\u00a0interstate and interagency cooperation for mitigation and resolution of the issues.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559685&quot;:360}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Lack of gender-neutral provisions for conferral of nationality and restrictive judicial interpretations of the constitutional legal safeguards continue to create pushback against the potential of the safeguards to benefit children in need of protection against statelessness and its negative human rights implications, including children born out of wedlock to at least a\u00a0Malaysian parent. Human\u00a0rights based\u00a0perspectives are\u00a0still ambivalent\u00a0in judicial interpretations of the legal provisions vis-\u00e0-vis technical understandings\u00a0on\u00a0citizenship claims. Even the principle of the best interests of the child is seldom invoked as a tool of legal analysis of the related provisions on citizenship that could offer protection against statelessness.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559685&quot;:360}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">There are ample frameworks that call for the principles of shared responsibility and cooperation between states on improving the aspect of management of irregular migration, such as the Bali Process and the recently concluded Global Compact on Migration. The provision of legal identity for all is clearly embedded in such frameworks, which is key to tackling the root causes of displacement and ensuring orderly and regular migration\u00a0<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">&#8211;<\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u00a0both\u00a0forming important measures to\u00a0reduce\u00a0statelessness. The big task ahead is how to translate and channel all these commitments and principles into actionable plans\u00a0as\u00a0progress\u00a0in\u00a0tackling\u00a0politically sensitive issues such as statelessness is\u00a0always\u00a0conditioned on the level of<\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u00a0political will and buy-in on the part of the policy makers and political actors.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559685&quot;:360}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><div class=\"fusion-separator fusion-full-width-sep\" style=\"align-self: center;margin-left: auto;margin-right: auto;margin-top:20px;margin-bottom:20px;width:100%;\"><div class=\"fusion-separator-border sep-single sep-dashed\" style=\"border-color:#e0dede;border-top-width:1px;\"><\/div><\/div><div class=\"fusion-text fusion-text-5\"><p><span class=\"fusion-dropcap dropcap\">Q5<\/span> <b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Majority of the Human Rights Convention is not being enacted into local legislation. Why is it so?<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559685&quot;:360,&quot;335559991&quot;:360}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Treaties ratified by the Federal Government of Malaysia are not self-executing as Malaysia adopts a strict dualist approach. The definition of \u2018law\u2019 in the Federal Constitution of Malaysia itself does not include international law. The Government thus retains its authority to determine the scope and application of the treaties. Contrary to the idea of universal nature of human rights, such power, which also entails refusal to enact certain ratified provisions is thought necessary, among others, to avoid unintended results that could undermine the Constitution,\u00a0prejudice\u00a0and interfere with local customs, federal-state relations and other domestic interests. This assertion of sovereignty can be viewed as being contrary to \u2018good faith\u2019 for a contracting state that has already ratified a certain convention. The domestic courts, however, are not restricted from engaging with unincorporated treaty provisions in their legal interpretations and judicial reasoning, particularly for removing ambiguities in domestic legislation, including the Constitution, and highlighting the need to act consistently with the relevant ratified treaties. Such judicial roles which have been advanced in\u00a0a number of\u00a0cases can certainly help mitigate against the effects of such strict dualism.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559685&quot;:360}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><div class=\"fusion-text fusion-text-6\"><p><span class=\"fusion-dropcap dropcap\">Q6<\/span> <b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">What do you hope to accomplish through your current work and research?<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Through my current research, I hope to present states within ASEAN including Malaysia, analysis of data and resources to evaluate strengths, weaknesses and gaps in their birth registration coverage and governance. The compilation and comparative evaluation of the standards and best practices will provide them with legal, policy and to some extent technical guidance for improvement in realizing universal birth registration and legal identity for all,\u00a0especially children. The outcomes could further contribute to enhancing the knowledge base complementing and supporting the goals of promoting equality and opportunity for all through ASEAN Community 2025, as well as promoting and protecting human rights and sustainable development goals of 2030, through the provision of legal identity for all.\u00a0<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559685&quot;:220}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">I hope that my work on statelessness, together with the efforts and contributions by other stakeholders within and beyond academia, will deepen our current understanding, facilitate\u00a0discussions\u00a0and eventually nurture potential solutions for legal identity and protection\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0of the rights of every child.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6,&quot;335559685&quot;:220}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">*The above conversation is adapted from an earlier interview given for Lexis Nexis\u00a0by Dr\u00a0Rodziana\u00a0Mohamed Razali\u00a0and her testimonies to McGill Centre for Human Rights and Legal Pluralism.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335551550&quot;:6,&quot;335551620&quot;:6}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><div class=\"fusion-separator fusion-full-width-sep\" style=\"align-self: center;margin-left: auto;margin-right: auto;margin-top:20px;margin-bottom:20px;width:100%;\"><div class=\"fusion-separator-border sep-single sep-dashed\" style=\"border-color:#e0dede;border-top-width:1px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><style type=\"text\/css\">.fusion-body .fusion-builder-column-0{width:100% !important;margin-top : 0px;margin-bottom : 0px;}.fusion-builder-column-0 > .fusion-column-wrapper {padding-top : 0px !important;padding-right : 0px !important;margin-right : 0px;padding-bottom : 0px !important;padding-left : 0px !important;margin-left : 0px;}@media only screen and (max-width:1024px) {.fusion-body .fusion-builder-column-0{width:100% !important;}.fusion-builder-column-0 > .fusion-column-wrapper {margin-right : 0px;margin-left : 0px;}}@media only screen and (max-width:640px) {.fusion-body .fusion-builder-column-0{width:100% !important;}.fusion-builder-column-0 > .fusion-column-wrapper {margin-right : 0px;margin-left : 0px;}}<\/style><\/div><\/div><style type=\"text\/css\">.fusion-fullwidth.fusion-builder-row-1 { overflow:visible; }.fusion-body .fusion-flex-container.fusion-builder-row-1{ padding-top : 0px;margin-top : 0px;padding-right : 0px;padding-bottom : 0px;margin-bottom : 0px;padding-left : 0px;}<\/style><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":72667,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[254],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usim.edu.my\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63504"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usim.edu.my\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usim.edu.my\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usim.edu.my\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usim.edu.my\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=63504"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.usim.edu.my\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63504\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":63505,"href":"https:\/\/www.usim.edu.my\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63504\/revisions\/63505"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usim.edu.my\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/72667"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usim.edu.my\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=63504"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usim.edu.my\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=63504"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usim.edu.my\/ms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=63504"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}