Malaysia hopes to win as row with Indonesia goes to court

Malaysia hopes to win as row with Indonesia goes to court

Agence France-Presse, Kuala Lumpur

The International Court of Justice in The Hague would begin
hearing arguments from Malaysia and Indonesia over a territorial
claim on Monday, said Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad
Badawi.

"We hope we will win. We are well prepared and will do our
best during the two week hearing in the Netherlands," Abdullah
told reporters.

Asked if Kuala Lumpur or Jakarta would lodge an appeal if they
lost, he said: "Malaysia and Indonesia have agreed that we will
accept the decision."

Abdullah said Malaysia was represented by Foreign Minister
Syed Hamid Albar and legal officials from the attorney-general's
chambers.

Later Abdullah left for Indonesia for a three-day visit to
boost bilateral and economic cooperation.

The territorial dispute between the two neighbors is over two
tiny islands off eastern Sabah state on Borneo island, Sipadan
and Litigan, which are a divers' paradise.

Both islands lie in the Sulawesi sea. Sipadan drew
international attention in April 2000 after a band of Muslim
rebels -- the Abu Sayyaf gang from neighboring Philippines --
raided the island and kidnapped 21 Malaysians and foreigners.

The territorial dispute dates back to 1969 when boundaries
were being drawn up by a joint committee from the two countries.

This is the first Southeast Asian territorial dispute to go to
the ICJ and diplomats say it is a reflection that countries in
the region are able to settle their differences through talks.

Another outstanding territorial dispute is the claim over the
Spratly islands by China, the Philippines, Taiwan, Brunei,
Malaysia and Vietnam.

There are also overlapping claims by Malaysia and Singapore to
Pul