NRD Withdraws Appeal Over Order To Issue Birth Certificate To Stateless Man

GEORGE TOWN,  Nov 25  (Bernama) -- The National Registration Department (NRD) today withdrew its appeal against a High Court's decision ordering it to issue a new birth certificate to a stateless man.

Lawyer Datuk Habib Rahman Seeni Mohideen, representing Mohd Razwil Abdullah, 41, said he was informed of the matter this morning.

Following the withdrawal, he said, the decision delivered by High Court Judge Datuk Quay Chew Soon on Nov 14 last year remains in effect.

“With this decision, the NRD is required to issue a new birth certificate stating that Mohd Razwil is a Malaysian citizen,” he told reporters outside the High Court here.

Mohd Razwil filed his citizenship application on April 8, 2024, after successfully locating the woman who found him when he was an infant, Rohaida Abdul Rashid, who was the sole witness in the case.

In his judgment, Quay ordered the NRD to issue a new birth certificate identifying Mohd Razwil as a Malaysian citizen under Article 14(1)(b) of the Federal Constitution.

He also directed the Registrar General of Births and Deaths, the NRD, the NRD Director-General and the Malaysian Government to issue Mohd Razwil an identity card reflecting his Malaysian citizenship status.

This prompted the NRD to appeal against the decision.

Meanwhile, according to Habib Rahman, Rohaida found his client, then a baby, in 1984 near a garbage bin at Chow Kit Market, Kuala Lumpur, wrapped in a white towel, with his umbilical cord still attached.  

Mohd Razwil was taken in and cared for by Rohaida until he was four years old, after which he was handed over to the Social Welfare Department and remained under the agency until he was 15.

The lawyer said newly uncovered information from Rohaida helped answer questions about Mohd Razwil’s background, which enabled them to reapply for citizenship after previous applications were rejected due to a lack of information about his parents.

Mohd Razwil, who now works as a restaurant assistant, thanked the government, the Home Ministry and the Attorney General's Chambers for withdrawing the appeal.

-- BERNAMA