"I'm like a locally born alien!"
Xu: I was born and raised here, a fact which no one can deny. Photo courtesy: Sin Chew Daily.
"I was born and raised here, but when I grew up, I was denied citizenship! There isn't a country in this world that would recognise me.
"I'm like... an alien!"
Xu Jinfang is living happily with her husband and a son. However, the absence of a nationality has plagued her life all these years.
When she planned to visit the Netherlands, Switzerland and other countries several years ago, she was denied a visa because she was a stateless person.
She lamented that she was born and raised right here in Malaysia, and both her husband and son are Malaysian citizens. Deep inside her, Malaysia is always her home, although this country does not recognise her.
Xu's parents applied for her citizenship for the first time when she was in Standard Six. However, following the death of her father, the issue of applying for citizenship has remained unresolved.
Born in Kulim, Kedah, in 1952, Xu did not bother too much about the citizenship when she was young, and having missed the opportunity to apply for one, the issue has since become her biggest nightmare after graduating from high school.
She tried to apply for citizenship on three separate occasions after graduation, but was turned down each time.
When applying for the first time, she felt helpless after her application was rejected, as the red IC she was holding did not allow her to get the job she had wanted.
That was when she felt helpless and at loss for the first time being a stateless person.
She applied for citizenship again with the help of Gerakan Rakyat. However, the assistance from Gerakan did not seem to make things any better.
She was not given any reason for failing to get her citizenship on both occasions.
By the time she applied for the third time, she had already had a steady job and life, and the citizenship was just to fulfill her wish. She passed all the tests and was able to handle the interview pretty well as she already had the experience.
Finally she was given a reason for being rejected. But the reason was absurd.
She was rejected again because of her frequent oversea trips.
Owing to her work, she had to travel frequently to places like China, but that had become the reason she was rejected by the National Registration Department.
She later tried to contain her desire to apply for citizenship, but when she tried to apply for a visa to go to Europe, she was told, "Your application is rejected because you are a stateless person."
She has to learn to admit the fact that there isn't a place for her in this world. As a stateless person, she is more like an alien on Earth.
Holding only a red IC, Xu is destined to go through tough life in this country. Not a very well built woman, she had to work as a construction worker, gardener, nanny, domestic servant, carpenter and other manual works.
She said the society was very sensitive towards red IC holders during those years, and even if they had good educational backgrounds, they were only given menial jobs.
"I remember I was only 86 pounds yet had to carry 75 bags of cement a day!"
She said she tried to work with a cultural institution. Her application for a job in a local newspaper was turned down because of the colour of her IC.
In the end, she secured the post of executive secretary for the Chung Hwa Alumni Association in KL, and later the executive secretary for the Selangor & Federal Territory Ku Su Shin Choong Hung Restaurant Association.
Wants to be a true Malaysian
Although her life is quite stable now, she is still unable to get her citizenship. Very few people could understand her feelings. Having lived here for all her life, her identity is still not yet recognised, and she is unable to enjoy the voting right and medical benefits that people around her are entitled to.
Without the nationality, her life remains incomplete.
"I was born and raised here. This is a fact that no one can deny. However, I have been denied a blue IC. I really feel very helpless and at loss."
Having lived in this country for so many years, she said she had fully assimilated herself into the life in Malaysia. But each time she takes out her red IC, she will be categorised as a stateless person, not Malaysian.
She now has a steady life and a happy family, but all she has wanted over the past half a century is to become a true Malaysian citizen.
Unfortunately, she is still unable to get this dream realised. (Translated by DOMINIC LOH/Sin Chew Daily)
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