SUHAKAM’s REPORT TO THE UNITED NATIONS COMMITTEE ON ELIMINATION OF DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN expedite the drafting of this law. It is the Commission’s hope that the proposed law will promote and protect women rights and henceforth empower and elevate the status of women.3 3.3.2 In the interim, the Commission urges the Government to review statutory provisions and to the extent that they are inconsistent with the spirit of CEDAW, to amend them in line with the said treaty and international principles. 3.4 RIGHT TO CITIZENSHIP 3.4.1 In Malaysia, the children of a female Malaysian who is married to a non-Malaysian do not qualify automatically for citizenship. Such children only qualify for citizenship if they were born in Malaysia. On the other hand, the children of a Malaysian father and a non- Malaysian mother qualify for citizenship regardless of the place of birth, provided that the birth of the child born outside the country is registered at a Malaysian Consulate within a prescribed time, as prescribed under Article 14 of the Federal Constitution.4 3.4.2 Besides that, Article 15 of the Federal Constitution provides that citizenship may be conferred on the foreign wife of a Malaysian man upon an application made to the Government of Malaysia. However, there is no similar provision for the foreign husband of Malaysian woman. 3.4.3. While the Commission is aware of an administrative procedure that was introduced in 2010 that enables Malaysian women who are married to foreigners to apply for Malaysian citizenship for their children who were born outside Malaysia, nevertheless the Commission views the continued existence of Articles 14 and 15 as being discriminatory. Accordingly, the Commission urges the Government to ensure that the provisions in the Federal Constitution are consistent with the principle of non-discrimination as upheld by CEDAW, more specifically the Article 9(2). 3.5 SEXUAL ABUSE AND VIOLENCE WITHIN MARRIAGE AND MARITAL RAPE 3.5.1 While the Commission welcomes the move in making it an offence under a new section 375A of the Penal Code for a husband to cause hurt or fear of death or hurt to his wife in order to have 3 4 SUHAKAM Annual Report 2010, p.56. Part II of the Second Schedule of Federal Constitution. 3