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theSUN ON THURSDAY | FEBRUARY 24, 2022

NEWS WITHOUT BORDERS

Giving forgotten kids a chance

oGroup of lawyers sets up Project 6Children to
fight for identity of undocumented children
█ BY SHIVANI SUPRAMANI that this was a problem faced by more
newsdesk@thesundaily.com people than it has ever been
perceived,” project coordinator Satis
PETALING JAYA: Their status speaks Kumar told theSun.
for itself. For now, the task at hand is to
Categorised as “undocumented” submit applications for late
an indeterminate number of children registrations of birth for five children
have been neglected and forgotten whose cases are being handled by the
because on record they do not exist. law firm. Apart from that is an
However, their situation may application for the extraction of the
change soon, thanks to a group of birth certificate of a sixth individual.
lawyers. Under Project 6Children, The process will be documented
launched in January by the law firm by Project 6Children and then made
Messrs Ngeow and Tan, an effort is public. “The idea is to tell people how
already under way to give them an it can be done so anyone can do it
identity and, with it, the opportunity without having to engage
to make it in life. professional help, for instance that of
“It was borne out of a realisation a lawyer and end up incurring
exorbitant costs,” he said.
However, Satis said the core
mission is to impress upon the
masses the risk of being
undocumented. “The plight of the
undocumented has not been in the
spotlight as much as statelessness.”
The six children whose cases are
now being handled by Ngeow and
Tan will become the face of Project
6Children. Currently, five of them are
in the care of the Bodhi Home in
Cheras, Kuala Lumpur.
According to Satis, a pattern has
emerged among the applicants.
“One parent would be Malaysian
and the other not. Both biological
parents are not legally married and
the applicant was born and raised in
Malaysia.”
The five children whom Satis is
fighting for are now unable to attend
school although they are already
aged seven to 13, a reflection of the
plight of all undocumented children.
Satis said some parents had tried
to register their children’s birth but
were barred from doing so by the
National Registration Department
because they were not legally
married.
The sixth child, Fiona, now aged
20, was first introduced to the team
when she was 18. Satis said she had a
birth certificate but her father
disappeared with it.
“She managed to complete
primary school but was unable to
continue on to secondary school for
unknown reasons. Without a birth
certificate, she is unable to secure
employment,” he said.
Sisters Amelia, aged 11 and Bella,
aged 12, as well as 14-year-old
Charles failed to get their birth
certificates because they parents
were late in registering their births.
Brothers Danny and Ethan, aged
seven and eight, succeeded in getting
their birth certificates two years after
they submitted an application, but
they have been denied citizenship.
Apart from not being able to
attend school they have also been
denied free healthcare at government
clinics and hospitals.
He said that without proper
identification, they risk being
categorised as illegal immigrants.
“They could also fall prey to human
traffickers and crime syndicates.”
Without even a basic education,
he said, they would not be able to
obtain legal employment or open
bank accounts and if they get married
their children could end up stateless.
For updates on Project 6Children,
please visit its social media pages at
Facebook: Project 6Children
(facebook.com/project6children) and
Instagram: @Project 6Children
(instagram.com/project6children/).

Some firms hire part-timers to meet demand
“However, we recognise the need for
everyone to continue to play their role to
ensure that their workplaces remain
safe.”
He advised employers to
continue with the TRIIS (test, From
report, isolate, inform and seek) front
regimen and to strictly observe the page
SOP to reduce the risk of infection
among workers.
Malaysian Employers Federation
president Datuk Dr Syed Hussain Syed
Husman said the high transmission rate of
the Omicron variant has proven to be a
challenge for employers to keep their
workforce and workplace free of infection.
“Employers have been forced to make
changes by requiring only those whose
responsibilities cannot be performed
remotely to be present at the workplace.
“Others have adopted a rotation system to
reduce the number of people at the
workplace. Meetings and business
engagements are conducted in a hybrid
mode – online and face-to-face.”
Some companies have also turned to
part-timers to meet manpower
demands.
Syed Hussain said the situation could be
alleviated by planning ahead and recruiting
temporary workers and give them proper
training. “When the need arises, these
workers can be asked to fill in.”
Syed Hussain also expressed concern that
an increase in close contact cases could lead
to abuse.
“It is important to remind workers of the
consequences if they are caught cheating,”
he said, adding that employers should
manage abuse in accordance with their own
disciplinary action procedures.
“Stern action should be taken against
abusers because they jeopardise operations
and mislead the authorities in the managing
of the pandemic.”
Small and Medium Enterprises
Association secretary-general Yeoh Seng
Hooi said while disruptions are bound to
happen, employers have to learn to
accommodate such challenges as the nation
moves into the endemic stage.
He said the impact of a surge in infections
would be greater for companies that do not
have operations at more than one location.
“Those that have several branches can
move their workers around to optimise use
of manpower.”
BEACH
SHOW ... The
Mukun Anak
Labuan group, in
full Kedayan
traditional
BRIEFS
TNB has over 1.8m
smart meter users
KUALA LUMPUR: Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB)
has installed over 1.8 million smart meters in
the Klang Valley and Malacca in an effort to
improve services to its consumers.
In a statement yesterday, CEO Datuk
Baharin Din said TNB had met its target of
installing 1.8 million smart meters before the
end of 2021, due to the cooperation of
consumers and support of the Energy and
Natural Resources Ministry, Energy
Commission, state governments and local
authorities.
“Thanks to consumers in Kuala Lumpur,
Putrajaya, Selangor and Malacca, who gave us
their cooperation, we managed to install more
than 1.8 million smart meters,” he said.
Baharin also said through the smart meter
and the myTNB portal and application,
consumers could monitor consumption
patterns in ringgit or kilowatt-hours, view
current consumption notifications at the end of
the billing cycle, as well as the impact of energy
consumption on the environment.
Consumers can practise energy-efficiency
tips that can be browsed at
http://www.tnb.com.my/ to take advantage of
smart meter information and reduce carbon
footprint. – Bernama
50% OF VACANCIES AT UNISZA

Aspiring astronaut aims to soar high at Spaceport America Cup
█ BY ELLY FAZANIZA
newsdesk@thesundaily.com
PETALING JAYA: Watching the 2005
science fiction movie Zathura: A
Space Adventure inspired Vanmitha
Athimoolam (pix) to become an
astronaut.
Now, at 22 and a fifth-semester
student studying aerospace
engineering at Universiti Sains
Malaysia (USM), Vanmitha is being
put through a rigorous test to see if her
dream will come true.
She has formed a 12-member team called
“Wau Rocketry” to design and build a rocket
to take part in the world’s largest student
rocket competition – the Spaceport America
Cup, scheduled to be held in New Mexico,
United States, in June.
Vanmitha told theSun that she chose her
team members “based on their passion to
build a rocket from scratch. I want
my team to fly high in this field (in
aerospace)”.
The rocket is called Hebat, which
means “great” in Malay. Wau
Rocketry is the only team from
Malaysia competing in the event.
According to the competition
rules, entries are judged based on
three criteria: maximum altitude,
recovery of fallen pieces and “live”
streaming data to the on-field
station.
The team intends to compete in the
10,000ft commercial off-the-shelf category.
“Our rocket weighs 22.67kg and is 2.8m in
length. It is made of fibreglass composite
material,” she explained.
costume,
performing live
at the Tanjung
Aru Beach,
Labuan, during a
recording session
to document the
Kedayan Labuan
ethnic arts and
culture yesterday.
– BERNAMAPIX
“It will carry a nano satellite built by USM
and will launch at 900ft.”
She admitted the main challenge was the
surge in Covid-19 infection.
“With the number of cases rising, we really
can’t make much progress as one of my
teammates got Covid-19. Making health a
priority, I paused all laboratory work and told
the management to close the lab for
sanitisation. All of us took the Covid-19 test
and those who were close contacts
underwent quarantine,” she said.
The team’s advisers are Dr Norilmi Amilia
Ismail and Dr Chang Wei Shyang from USM’s
School of Aerospace Engineering.
More than 40 countries are expected to
participate in the competition, which involves
some 1,700 students.
“The rocket will be assembled in
Malaysia,” Vanmitha added.
TEACHING HOSPITAL FILLED
KUALA TERENGGANU: Over 50% of the 951
job vacancies available at Universiti Sultan
Zainal Abidin (UniSZA) Teaching Hospital
have been filled, its acting vice-chancellor
Prof Dr Fadzli Adam said. “The remaining
vacant positions would soon be advertised
once they have been approved by the
Public Service Department and the staff
recruitment should be completed by the
time the teaching hospital starts to
operate,” he told a media conference at
UniSZA on Tuesday. The UniSZA Teaching
Hospital, developed at a cost of RM281
million, will be a medical and learning
centre for students in the medicine, health
sciences, and pharmacy faculties as well as
other related fields. – Bernama
HIKE IN MARRIAGE
SOLEMNISATION PAYMENT
GEORGE TOWN: The Penang Islamic
Religious Affairs Department (JHEAIPP)
yesterday confirmed the increase in the
goodwill payment rate (kadar saguhati) for
jurunikah (person who solemnises the
marriage) and two witnesses in the state
starting March 1. JHEAIPP director Datuk
Mohd Zakuan Zakaria said the payment
was increased from RM120 to RM250
overall for each marriage solemnisation,
which is the new rate after 15 years. “The
increase from RM120 to RM250 involves
jurunikah, which was previously RM100 for
the jurunikah and RM10 each for the
witnesses, and starting March 1, the new
rate will be RM150 and RM100 (RM50 each)
respectively. – Bernama