Edwin* was finally marrying his childhood sweetheart. It’s going to be one grand wedding as the entire church, who had watched the young lovers grew up, was involved in the celebration. Then, the pastor of their Sabah church found out that Edwin and Stella* could not register their marriage with the Registrar of Marriage because Edwin’s MyKad stated he was a Muslim. To legalise his marriage, Edwin had to be married under Syariah law.
Earlier on, Edwin had tried to remove the word “Islam” from his Mykad at the Registration Department but was told by the officer that he had to go through the normal procedure – get an exit order from the Syariah court or show proof that he was not a Muslim. Because it was such a cumbersome process, Edwin did not pursue the matter.
After much discussion, Edwin and Stella decided against the Muslim marriage. Since they couldn’t be married under civil law, they decided to just have the church ceremony. And so they did. They had a beautiful wedding, despite the knowledge that their marriage was not recognised by the Government and that that Edwin might be charged by the Syariah court with “khalwat” for living with a non-Muslim.
Two years later, junior came along, but their joy was cut short when they tried to register the baby’s birth at the Registration Department. The couple was faced with the reality that the baby must be registered as a Muslim in accordance with Edwin’s MyKad religion.
They still have a way out – they could register the baby under the mother’s name under the singlemother status (since they don’t have a marriage certificate). However, they run the risk that someone may inform the Muslim authorities that the baby’s father (Edwin) was a Muslim.
Edwin is just one of the many East Malaysians facing this problem. But in the first place, why was he listed as a Muslim in his MyKad?
It started with his late father whose name carried a “Bin”. When registering for his MyKad, the officer, assuming he was a Malay, automatically listed him as a Muslim and entered “Islam” into his data. The word “Islam” is engraved on his MyKad, according to the law. Thus, he became a Muslim though he had been a third-generation Christian.
In East Malaysia, it is common for bumiputeras to have “bin” (for males) and “binti” (for females) in their names, but this does not mean they are Malays.
Edwin’s father had taken little notice of the word “Islam” in his MyKad as he thought that as long as he was going to church and practising the Christian way of life, there would be no problem. When he took his children to the Registration Department to get their MyKad, the officers naturally registered them as Muslims, again according to the law.
Many East Malaysian Christians who have the entry “Islam” in their MyKad have tried getting the Registration Department to remove it but to no avail.
Often, when they tell the Registration Department officers that they have been Christians for many generations, they are told to bring their fathers or mothers to the department for verification. Unfortunately, most of the time, the parents have passed on and there is none left to verify their claim. If the parents are still alive but their MyKad carry the word “Islam”, it’s back to square one.
Edwin inherited the problem from his father and now, his baby has inherited the problem. And the unwanted inheritance will pass on if they are unable to solve the problem.
To help resolve this issue, NECF Malaysia is now conducting a nationwide exercise to gather information on the number of East Malaysian Christians who are facing this problem. NECF has notified the Bahasa churches in Peninsular and East Malaysia to provide information of their members whose MyKad carry the entry “Islam”.
The data in the MyKad can be easily retrieved from a MyKad reader, which can be purchased at the Registration Departments, or through the Astro decoder.
NECF will then collate the information and forward it to the Christian Federation Malaysia (CFM) who will then meet with the relevant authorities to discuss the issue.
* Names have been changed.
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