KUALA LUMPUR: The Home Ministry has received 31,494 citizenship applications for persons below the age of 21 under Article 15(A) of the Federal Constitution or registration under special circumstances for minors, from 2015 till June 30 this year.
Its minister Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainuddin told the Dewan Rakyat that 28,211 applications were being processed, while for Sabah, 9,388 were being processed.
"We are looking at the details whether they are the children of illegal immigrants and other issues that caused them to become stateless in Sabah and where they were born and such.
"This is a big problem for Sabah and the Federal Government," said Hamzah while replying to questions from Datuk Azizah Mohd Dun (Bersatu-Beaufort) during the minister's question time in parliament today.
Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal (Warisan-Semporna) said there must be a solution to the problem as there were stateless children who grow to adulthood in Sabah after being abandoned by their parents at a young age.
"They can't go to school because there is no clarification. They don't know where they are from … Indonesia or Philippines. We have to solve the issue of the adults and the children who have no place to depend on."
He also said the government has to clarify its stand on the IMM13 paper holders which number around 30,000 to 40,000 in Sabah and recognised by the United Nations as war refugees and the hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants carrying Burung-Burung and other census cards.
"We can't legitimise something which is illegitimate, so I hope there is an explanation."
Hamzah assured Shafie that citizenships would not be given indiscriminately as Malaysia was a sovereign country.
He however said that there could not be double standards for children holding 1MM13 papers versus those holding Burung-Burung and other census documents.
"That is why I need to look at all their documents. If you are looking at the human factor, let me standardise the census documents and 1MM13.
"Let me standardise all to find out what is the status of their parents. Looking at the human factor we need to make sure these kids who are stateless at least have an identity to live in this country."
Shafie was drawing on Dr Kelvin Yii's (DAP-Bandar Kuching) questions earlier where the latter had said that the same answer was given by the ministry on the stateless every year and the problem had yet to be resolved.
Yii who also stressed that children cannot be punished for their mistakes had also asked how illegal-immigrants were differentiated from the stateless especially in Sabah and Sarawak where the issue was a big problem.