KUALA LUMPUR, April 13 — The High Court today rejected the citizenship appeal for a stateless man born in Kuala Lumpur in 2000 and adopted by a Malaysian couple.

The couple, who married in 1988, had their first application for their adopted son’s citizenship in 2015 rejected in 2019 — with no reasons given — and their second application in 2019 was still pending prompting them to appeal the case to the High Court.

In the lawsuit filed via an originating summons on November 9, 2020, the father and the man who will be turning 22 this year had named three respondents, namely the National Registration Department’s director-general, the Home Ministry secretary-general and the Malaysian government.

Lawyer for the family Larissa Ann Louis told Malay Mail about the verdict by High Court judge Datuk Ahmad Kamal Md Shahid, adding that no reasons were given and that the family would appeal the decision.

"No one should be left stateless when there are avenues available to be a citizen. The Honourable High Court unfortunately dismissed the Originating Summons for citizenship and hence the family will be appealing to the Court of Appeal on the said decision,” she said.

According to the affidavits presented in the case, the adopted parents had tried to find his biological parents but after years of searching they couldn’t find them. They adopted him legally in 2013.

The man in question had suffered mental anguish throughout his schooling life, often being teased for not having any citizenship status and was called a foreigner or immigrant by his peers.

The family and the man were always stressed due to the uncertainty surrounding his citizenship status especially when a new school year began as the schools would always question it.

Due to him not having a valid MyKad he is having a hard time getting a driver’s license, enrolling in universities, applying for scholarships, opening a bank account and he cannot make any online transactions as well.