World court to rule on RI-Malaysia territorial dispute over islands
World court to rule on RI-Malaysia territorial dispute over islands
Agence France-Presse, The Hague
The world court in The Hague announced on Thursday that it will
issue a ruling on Dec. 17 on a territorial dispute between
Indonesia and Malaysia over two resource-rich islands in the
Sulawesi sea.
The judgement will be read out by judge Gilbert Guillaume, the
president of the court. There is no appeal mecanism for rulings
by the ICJ.
This is the first Southeast Asian territorial dispute to go to
the ICJ, the supreme legal body of the United Nations.
Pulau Ligitan and Pulau Sipidan, small islands off Malaysia's
eastern Sabah state that are known as a diver's paradise, are
claimed by Indonesia and Malaysia which cover their their oil and
natural gas reserves.
Pulau 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 dispute between Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur over the isles
dates back to 1969 when the two countries, unable to agree on the
boundaries, decided to maintain the status quo temporarily.
They signed an accord in May 1997, handing the International
Court of Justice (ICJ) responsibility for resolving the dispute
"in the spirit of friendly relations," adding that they would
accept the court's decision as "final and binding upon them".
In June of this year both Indonesia and Malaysia presented the
basis for their historical claim on the island in several days of
public hearings.
Both countries named treaties signed by their former colonial
powers, Britain for Malaysia and the Netherlands for Indonesia,
in the late 19th and early 20th century to show their
sovereignty.
Indonesia retained the services of four internationally
reputed lawyers to represent it in the court in The Hague. They
are Alain Pellet (France), Alfred Soons (Netherlands), Sir Arthur
Watts (Britain) and Rodman R. Bundy (United States). Similarly,
Malaysia had retained the services of four international lawyers.
Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirayuda disclosed this
week that the government had spent some Rp 16 billion (US$1.7
million) in the Sipadan and Ligitan campaign since 1997, mostly
on legal fees for the lawyers who billed by the hour.
The court ruling will be final and binding on both sides,
without any chance of an appeal, he said, adding that the United
Nations Security Council had the power to execute the ruling
should Indonesia or Malaysia decided to ignore it.
This latter clause is necessary to deter the losing party from
resorting to the use of force in claiming sovereignty over the
islands.