The High Court also directed the registrar general of births and deaths, JPN, the JPN director-general and government to issue Razwil Abdullah an identity card reflecting his status as a Malaysian citizen.
GEORGE TOWN: The national registration department (JPN) has withdrawn its appeal against a High Court order to issue a new birth certificate to a stateless man.
Lawyer Habib Rahman Seeni Mohideen, representing Razwil Abdullah, 41, said he was informed of the matter this morning.
Following the withdrawal, he said, the decision delivered by Justice Quay Chew Soon on Nov 14, 2024 remained in effect.
“With this decision, JPN is required to issue a new birth certificate stating that Razwil is a Malaysian citizen,” he told reporters outside the High Court here.
Razwil filed his citizenship application on April 8, 2024 after successfully locating the woman who had found him when he was an infant.
The woman, Rohaida Abdul Rashid, was the sole witness in the case.
In his judgment, Quay ordered JPN to issue a new birth certificate identifying Razwil as a Malaysian citizen under Article 14(1)(b) of the Federal Constitution.
He also directed the registrar general of births and deaths, JPN, the JPN director-general and government to issue Razwil an identity card reflecting his status as a Malaysian citizen.
This prompted JPN to appeal against the decision.
Habib Rahman said Rohaida had found his client when he was a baby in 1984 near a garbage bin at Chow Kit Market, Kuala Lumpur. He was wrapped in a white towel, with his umbilical cord still attached.
Razwil was taken in and cared for by Rohaida until he was four years old, after which he was handed over to the welfare department. He remained under the agency until he was 15.
The lawyer said new information from Rohaida had helped answer questions about Razwil’s background, enabling them to reapply for citizenship after previous applications were rejected due to a lack of information about his parents.
Razwil, who now works as a restaurant assistant, thanked the government, home ministry and Attorney-General’s Chambers for withdrawing the appeal.
