Citizenship can be granted under Article 14(1)(b) of the Federal Constitution when a child is born in Malaysia to parents, one of whom is a citizen, despite prior illegitimacy if legitimation occurs post-birth.

[1] The appellant, Madhuvita Janjara Augustin is a minor, aged 11. Her application before the High Court for amongst others, an order that she be re-registered by the 3rd respondent, the Registrar of Births And Deaths, with the status of a "Malaysian citizen" was brought on her behalf by her mother, her next friend. There were no objections to her other orders, that she is the lawful child of the 1st respondent, her father; that appropriate DNA tests be conducted to verify her blood ties with the 1st respondent and her mother. Those orders were consequently granted without event. However, her application that she was entitled to be declared a Malaysian citizen was objected to by the respondents and consequently, dismissed by the High Court.

[2] Upon full consideration, we unanimously allowed her appeal and granted the order sought. These are our reasons in full.

Brief Facts

[3] The appellant was born on 28 November 2005 at the Tengku Ampuan Rahimah Hospital at Klang. Her birth was duly reported to the authorities on 1 December 2005. The appellant's mother, Margaret Louisa Tan, holds a passport issued by the Government of Papua New Guinea. Her father, the 1st respondent, is a Malaysian citizen, born in Selangor.

[4] At the time of her birth, her parents were not married to each other. Her parents only married on 23 January 2006, after the appellant was born. They could not marry any earlier as her mother's divorce from her former husband had yet to be finalised. The appellant has since birth, lived with her parents at Taman Mujur in Klang, Selangor. At the time of her application, she was schooling at Sekolah Rendah SK Kampung Jawa in Selangor.

[5] In her mother's affidavit filed in support of the appellant's application, her mother averred that both she and her husband were not aware that the appellant's birth was not registered until they wanted to enrol the appellant for primary education at a local school. A birth certificate was required for that purpose. The appellant's birth was then registered on 18 April 2011. According to the details entered in the birth certificate issued to her by the 3rd respondent, the appellant is not a citizen of Malaysia.

[6] The 1st respondent, the appellant's father subsequently applied for citizenship for the appellant under Art 15A of the Federal Constitution. By letter dated 16 January 2013, the Home Ministry advised the 1st respondent that the application was unsuccessful.

[7] Before the High Court, the appellant sought the following orders:

i. a declaration that the appellant is a legitimate daughter of the 1st respondent and Margaret Louisa Tan;

ii. an order that the appellant and the 1st respondent undergo DNA test to establish blood ties between them and that such results be taken as conclusive evidence of blood relations between them;

iii. the Registrar of Births & Deaths Malaysia re-register the appellant's birth as a legitimate person under the name of Madhuvita Janjara Augustin and the names of the 1st respondent and Margaret Louisa Tan be registered as the respective biological father and mother;

iv. the Registrar of Births And Deaths Malaysia re-register the status of citizenship of the appellant as "Malaysian citizen" and her religion as "Christian".

[8] The 2nd and 3rd respondents had no issue with and had no objections to the first three prayers. These prayers were then, allowed. The respondents had further agreed that a new birth certificate pursuant to s 17 of the Births and Deaths Registration Act 1957 [Act 299] will be issued in the event the appellant is declared as the legitimate child of the 1st respondent and Margaret Louisa Tan. With these concessions, a DNA test to establish paternity under prayer (ii) no longer arose.

[9] Consequently, the only issue before the High Court was whether the appellant may