President tells people to watch RI's borders

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Disappointed at the recent loss of two islands to Malaysia, President Megawati Soekarnoputri told Indonesians on Tuesday evening to be more alert over border issues.

"Learning from this experience, I ask the people of Indonesia and all those in the government, be they in Jakarta or in the regions, to carefully observe similar cases in other places," the President said in her new year address to the nation.

Indonesia lost the Sipadan and Ligitan islands to Malaysia in a ruling by the UN The Hague-based International Court of Justice on Dec. 17.

"No matter how difficult the circumstances, there must be effective steps so that this experience does not repeat itself," she said.

The dispute with Malaysia over the two islands stretched back to the late sixties and over four presidencies. But their loss comes as a particular blow to the nationalistic-leaning Megawati, who, in 1999, lambasted then president B.J. Habibie's move to allow former province East Timor to vote for independence.

Legislators have drawn parallels with East Timor's break away, and questioned Megawati's commitment on the issue of territorial integrity.

Although tiny, Sipadan and Ligitan are said to be rich in natural resources. Sipadan's famous diving attractions have also made it one of Malaysia's key tourist destinations.

Indonesia's lack of administrative control over the islands has led the UN court to rule in Malaysia's favor.

Now Megawati said she wanted more effective control over the nation's territory. "The area of a country, no matter how small or far it may be, represents a constitutional element of the whole of that country," she said.

"The problem is not just about legality, or who is using or occupying it (the area), but is also a matter of territorial integrity and that of national pride."

Legal experts have urged the government to secure border deals with neighboring countries.

Etty R. Agoes, a legal expert at the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, said Indonesia shared maritime borders with 10 countries but just six of them had signed an agreement on Indonesia's coastlines. Indonesia also has land borders with three countries.

Etty. however, did not elaborate what the bordering countries were.