Malay rights lobbyist Perkasa has lauded the Court of Appeal's dismissal of a citizenship application by two boys, for having “defended the constitution”.

“Perkasa respects the court in defending article 15(2) of the Federal Constitution, which concerns citizenship applications by those below 21.

“If the court allows the two cases in question, it will only open the doors wide to handing citizenships to individuals whose origins and lineage are questionable,” said Perkasa legal bureau chairperson Azmi Rais in a statement today.

He was referring to the Court of Appeal judges' unanimous dismissal of two separate applications, the first by an adoptive parent and the second, by a biological father, to compel the National Registration Department (NRD) to grant their children citizenship.

A three-member bench ruled that even though the boys were born in Malaysia, it was incumbent on the applicants to prove the boys were stateless or were not citizens of other countries.

Azmi berated Lawyers for Liberty executive director Eric Paulsen for criticising the verdict, questioning his understanding of the law.

Yesterday, the human rights lawyer weighed in on the case saying there were "no good reasons why these two children with genuine claims to citizenship should continue to be stateless".

"Paulsen's criticisms […] - that an almost impossible burden is placed on the boys to prove they are not citizens of another country - is an insult to the courts,” said Azmi.

“We question Paulsen's knowledge of the law, because it is clear under the law not only is jus soli required to be proven, but also the question of descent or jus sanguinis needs to be proven.”

The Perkasa leader urged the government to reject calls from certain quarters to relax the requirements of jus sanguinis, “because it will only be harmful to the future peace of Malaysians”.