Islands rift may be raised during Mahathir's visit

Islands rift may be raised during Mahathir's visit

JAKARTA (JP): The lingering dispute over the ownership of the
Sipadan and Ligitan islands is likely to find its way into talks
between President Soeharto and Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir
Mohamad when the latter makes an unofficial visit later this
week.

"The issue will very possibly be on their agenda, but it would
entirely depend on the two heads of state," said Minister of
Foreign Affairs Ali Alatas after meeting with Gambia's Foreign
Minister Bolong Landing Sonko yesterday.

Mahathir is scheduled to visit Jakarta on Sept. 16-17 to
address an international conference on human resource
development, but officials said he would also hold talks with
Soeharto during his stay.

The latest round of talks on the dispute ended in a deadlock
last week when Malaysia unexpectedly called for arbitration by
the United Nations' International Court of Justice (ICJ).

Head of the Indonesian delegation, Izhar Ibrahim, rejected
this suggestion saying Indonesia believed a third party was not
yet necessary in resolving what he considered to be strictly a
bilateral matter.

Alatas in a similar gesture acknowledged that Indonesia's
position in the matter was clear.

"We should try to resolve the matter through friendly,
bilateral talks, the ASEAN way," he said.

If Indonesia were ever to desire bringing in a third party to
help end the dispute, he said, Indonesia would suggest that
mechanisms already present in the Association of Southeast Asian
Nations (ASEAN), such as the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation, be
taken first.

"Only when these fail, should we seek outsiders. But it's not
time to involve a third party," Alatas added.

He said that by ending the dispute the "ASEAN way", both
countries have a chance of proving ASEAN is capable of solving
its own problems through self-created mechanisms.

Located in the Makasar Strait between East Kalimantan and
Sabah, East Malaysia, the tiny Sipadan and Ligitan Islands have
been disputed between the two countries since the 1960s.

In 1969, the two countries agreed to maintain the status quo
until legal ownership was maintained.

Legal documents

Each country possesses what it considers to be legal documents
justifying its legitimate rights over the two islands.

"Our documents, showing our position over the islands, are
very powerful," Alatas said, adding they are based on earlier
agreements between Dutch and British colonizers which stipulate
that the islands were once part of Dutch territory and therefore
are now part of Indonesia.

Alatas admitted, however, that Malaysia also possesses
documents of its own which it considers legitimate.

During the talks in Jakarta last week, Malaysia added some 22
more documents to the 67 already presented.

Although ASEAN has had to face various bilateral and
multilateral disputes over the years, with debate becoming heated
at times, Alatas said he did not consider these to be signs of a
weakening "ASEAN solidarity."

"I only consider that once in a while, (member countries) need
to be reminded that there are higher interests and principles at
stake," he said.

Meanwhile, Armed Forces (ABRI) chief spokesman Brig. Gen.
Syarwan Hamid yesterday assured that the Indonesian military
would not interfere in the Sipadan-Ligitan dispute.

Syarwan, who was in Kuala Lumpur to accompany ABRI Chief Gen.
Feisal Tanjung, was quoted by the Antara news agency as saying
that the diplomatic efforts made by Indonesia was the "best
alternative" the two countries had to promote good relations.

The Malaysia Armed Forces yesterday presented the medal for
the Distinguished Commander of Armed Forces to Gen. Feisal what
it considers as his extraordinary accomplishments in improving
relations between the two countries.

The honors, which is said to be of a higher degree than the
titles "Tan Seri" or "Datok", has been given in the past to
Feisal's predecessors Benny Moerdani and Try Sutrisno, currently
the vice president. (pwn)