Malaysia building naval base near border with RP
Malaysia building naval base near border with RP
Agencies, Kuala Lumpur
Malaysia will build a training base for its navy commando in the
eastern state of Sabah, the site of recent incursions by Islamic
rebels from the Philippines, senior officers said.
Capt. Nasaruddin Othman, the outgoing commander of the unit,
known as Paskal, said the new base near the town of Semporna
would cost up to 140 million ringgit ($37 million) and would be
finished by July, local news media reported on Thursday.
He said the facility would serve as the force's forward base
and would enable the Royal Malaysian Navy to increase patrols in
waters between the restive southern Philippines and nearby Sabah,
a Malaysian state on Borneo island.
Malaysian and Philippines authorities have bumped up security
along the border region since the terrorist-linked group the Abu
Sayyaf kidnapped two dozen people from tourist resorts in
Malaysia in 2000. The victims were later released, reportedly for
huge ransom sums.
In November, Malaysian authorities arrested Nur Misuari, the
former leader of another Islamic rebel group, as he tried to
cross illegally from the southern Philippines.
Misuari was apparently fleeing Philippines military forces
after an uprising he launched was put down. He remains in
Malaysian custody, awaiting extradition, and faces rebellion
charges in Manila.
On Thursday, Misuari's family sought for the trial to be held
in a third country, saying he would not get a fair trial in the
Philippines.
"The Philippines, according to the International Monetary
Fund, is the fourth most corrupt country in the world including
its judiciary," family counsel Elly Pamatong told a news
conference here.
"We do not expect an impartial trial in the Philippines. We
would like him to be tried in a third country and if a third
country determines that he's in fact a terrorist, then he should
be sent back to the Philippines."
Mostly-Muslim Malaysia has long been sympathetic to the Muslim
minority of largely Roman Catholic Philippines. But Malaysia
fears it could be used as a base for rebel groups, including Abu
Sayyaf, which the United States is linked with Osama bin Laden's
al-Qaeda organization.
"The base in Semporna will step up our capabilities in Sabah,"
the national news agency, Bernama, quoted Nasarrudin as saying.
Commodore Jamalludin Mohd Saman, the incoming head of the elite
unit, said training for its members would include joint exercises
with U.S. Navy SEAL forces and Australia's commando Special Air
Services regiment.