Singapore refutes 'wild' KL allegations - ST
Singapore delaying referring Malaysia's claim on Pedra Branca to
arbitration? It's absolutely wrong, says the Republic
By Brendan Pereira
MALAYSIA CORRESPONDENT
THE small lighthouse island of Pedra Branca to the east of
Singapore has once again become a flashpoint between the Republic
and Malaysia.
After a week of threats and accusations from across the Causeway,
Singapore responded yesterday.
Calling the recent allegations reported in the Malaysian media
'wild and irresponsible', a Foreign Ministry spokesman said they
were 'wrong both in fact and law'.
He not only debunked the various Malaysian claims but also noted
that it was Singapore that had first proposed to refer the issue to
the International Court of Justice (ICJ), and that was 13 years
ago.
This is contrary, he said, to recent Malaysian allegations that
Singapore was holding up the signing of a Special Agreement that
would allow this to take place.
He said: 'It was Singapore which first proposed to Malaysia in 1989
that Malaysia's claim to Pedra Branca should be referred to the
International Court of Justice for resolution. That has always been
our position and we stand ready to sign the Special Agreement, to
which both sides have agreed, to bring the dispute to the
ICJ.'
Asked when Singapore would be ready to sign it, a senior official
said: 'Any time.'
Malaysia proposed on Nov 2 that this agreement be signed at the
next water talks, but on Nov 29, it called off the talks, saying it
wanted to go directly to arbitration.
Singapore has exercised sovereignty over Pedra Branca since the
1840s, when the British colonial government built Horsburgh
Lighthouse on the island, to ensure the safety of passing
ships.
Singapore has continued to maintain the lighthouse and other
facilities needed for navigation.
Malaysia first staked a claim to the island it calls Pulau Batu
Putih in 1979, when it published a map of its territorial waters
that included the island. It claims the Johor Sultanate has
exercised complete jurisdiction and sovereignty over it since
1513.
Since 1979, there have been several incidents at sea, when
Malaysian vessels were prevented from approaching the island by
Singapore naval vessels patrolling the waters.
The latest took place on Dec 24, when a Republic of Singapore Navy
vessel ordered a Malaysian marine police boat to leave the area.
The Malaysian boat was ferrying journalists to the site.
The Malaysian media have been playing up the issue for a week since
the ICJ ruled in Malaysia's favour in a separate dispute with
Indonesia over the Sipadan and Ligatan islands, off the north-east
coast of Borneo. Last Sunday, to beef up the Malaysian claim, the
Mingguan Malaysia newspaper published on its front page a picture
of what it claimed were new structures that Singapore was building
on the island.
Yesterday, the MFA's spokesman set the record straight, pointing
out that the last things built there were a radar facility in 1989,
and a helipad in 1991 'to aid in the safety of navigation in and
out of the Straits of Singapore'.
The Malaysian accusations reflected 'either a lack of understanding
or misrepresentation of international law', said the
spokesman.
'The dispute over Pedra Branca arose in 1979 when Malaysia for the
first time contested Singapore's ownership and sovereignty. It is a
well-established principle in international law that acts done by
the disputing parties in an attempt to advance their own case after
the dispute has already arisen will not be given credence,' he
said.
He noted that Indonesia had complained to the ICJ about Malaysia's
continued activities on Sipadan while the dispute was still before
the court.
Malaysia had continued to promote the island, which is among the
top diving spots in the world, as one of its tourist
destinations.
Malaysia responded that it had done nothing wrong as it was merely
continuing actions it had undertaken before the dispute
arose.
'Singapore's activities on Pedra Branca are no different in law
from Malaysia's actions on Sipadan,' the MFA's spokesman
said.
Yesterday, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad rejected a
politician's call to consider having a military presence near the
island. Malaysia, he told reporters, will not station troops or
warships in the waters off the island.
He said: 'We want to avoid confrontation. We do not want to go to
war with anyone. It is not that we are giving up, we just do not
want to find a reason to go to war.'
SEVERAL INCIDENTS
THERE have been several incidents at sea since 1979, when Malaysia
staked a claim to the island. Malaysian vessels were prevented from
approaching the island by Singapore naval vessels patrolling the
waters.
The latest incident took place on Dec 24, when a Republic of
Singapore Navy vessel ordered a Malaysian marine police boat to
leave the area. The Malaysian boat was ferrying journalists to the
site.
A Malaysian paper last Sunday published on its front page a picture
of what it claimed were new structures that Singapore was building
on the island.
Yesterday, a Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman set
the record straight, pointing out that the Republic had not built
anything on Pedra Branca for over 10 years.
SINGAPORE'S VIEW
Ready to sign
'It was Singapore which first proposed to Malaysia in 1989 that
Malaysia's claim to Pedra Branca should be referred to the
International Court of Justice (ICJ) for resolution. That has
always been our position and we stand ready to sign the Special
Agreement, to which both sides have agreed, to bring the dispute to
the ICJ.'
-- A spokesman from Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs
(MFA)
Malaysia continued projects on Sipadan
'Malaysia claims that in the Sipadan and Ligitan dispute with
Indonesia, Malaysia stopped all the projects on the disputed
islands until the dispute was resolved. This is untrue. Indonesia
in fact complained to the ICJ about the continued activities by
Malaysia on Sipadan. Malaysia rejected these objections and their
counsel's argument in the ICJ was that what they did was not wrong
because these were merely the continuation of actions they had
undertaken before the dispute arose. Singapore's activities on
Pedra Branca are no different in law from Malaysia's actions on
Sipadan.'
-- An MFA spokesman
MALAYSIA'S VIEW
Singapore to blame
'But although Singapore agreed in 1998, they have yet to come up
with the necessary documentation to support their claim, and owing
to this, the dispute cannot be solved through the International
Court of Justice yet... Pulau Batu Putih is important to us because
it is our territory. We don't take into consideration whether it is
a source of oil or whatever.'
-- Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad at a press conference
on Dec 25. He was referring to the two countries' agreement in 1998
on the procedure to refer the matter to the ICJ
Location on its side
'Our arguments are solid, whether in terms of history, management
and administration or location of the island, which lies within
Malaysian waters.'
-- Johor Mentri Besar Abdul Ghani Othman
http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg/topstories/story/0,4386,162825,00.html
