No passport, IC will do, say lawyers

(fz.com) – The director-general of the Immigration department has no jurisdiction to stop Malaysians from coming back to the country by revoking their passports, lawyers said.

 

Commenting on a statement by Immigration director-general (DG) Datuk Alias Ahmad, who was quoted as saying that action could be taken under Section 8 of the Immigration Act 1959/1963 to revoke Malaysians’ passports from three to five years for protesting overseas, civil liberties lawyer Syahredzan Johan said that Section 8 only applies to foreigners, not Malaysians.

 

Syahredzan also pointed out that Section 7 of the Immigration Act explicitly provides that a citizen is entitled to enter Malaysia without need for permits or passes, except to Sabah and Sarawak.

 

“A passport is just for administrative purposes,” Syahredzan told fz.com in a phone interview.

 

When a Malaysian travels overseas, the passport is a document to prove that he is a Malaysian, because the other country does not recognise the identity card issued by the Malaysian government. When a Malaysian lands in Malaysia, if he does not have a passport, he can show his identity card to prove that he is a Malaysian, he added.

 

“He (the DG) has no business in trying to stop Malaysians from entering Malaysia. And he has no business in commenting on what Malaysian people are doing overseas, because this is beyond his jurisdiction,” Syahredzan said.