It's about time I touched on what I would like to think of as "The Battle of Pebbles, Rocks, and a Lighthouse". By the way, I just have to say that it'll suck to have to memorize the facts of this case in schools, when they eventually add this into the history text books. So kids, be afraid! (kidding)
I have to admit that I had not been following the development of the case from the beginning. I did however hear about it from a few people, that there was an on-going case between Malaysia and Singapore regarding some islands, and that a lighthouse was involved. I only knew that the islands had no other worth than to expand the fishing territories and airspace of both countries and that the lighthouse was a major asset. That's all I knew.
So when I just so happened to be at the right place at the right time (I had gone out to have tea, not knowing that the decision was due that day) to watch the live telecast of the decision of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), I was quite shocked to hear Rais Yatim say that it was a "win-win situation". Hearing that Singapore had won the rights over the main island (the one with the lighthouse), while Malaysia got Middle Rocks, with the decision on South Ledge yet to be decided at the time, didn't sound like a "win" to me at all. At that point I really thought I had missed out on some important facts, and that maybe those small "rocks" did carry some worth after all. So I went back and got busy surfing the web and reading the comments and posts from all over the blogosphere on this issue. This is what I got out of it.
Singapore won this:
Malaysia won the outcropping islands that you see in the picture above (top left and top right) and this:
(Both photos taken from http://muststopthis.blogspot.com with credit to Singapore Memorial)After what I've read, I fail to see how this was a "win-win situation". We got a few pebbles (2 of which can only be seen during low tide), while they got a freakin' lighthouse! And those islands are closer to Johor than to Singapore! How close? Take a look:
(Photo courtesy of Wikipedia : the '+' is the location of Pedra Branca/Pulau Batu Puteh) Excuse me, but that seriously doesn't look like it is close enough to be deemed 'claimable' by Singapore. Alright, they've been maintaining the lighthouse and have been claiming it as their territory since at least the early 1960's, but geographically I would still consider that more 'Johor' than 'Singapore'. I bet anyone with a brain can see what I mean. Heck, I'll even give Riau (Indonesia) a better claim than Singapore! So with our highly confident legal team going to the ICJ to present Malaysia's case, how did we end up "winning" only 2 out of 3 'rocks'?
This turned out to be the ball-buster, Singapore's trump card:
(Picture taken from http://no2umno.blogspot.com)Malaysian Legal Team: "...fuck!"
Well, I finally understand the importance of good filing.
That letter was all it took to give a 12-4 ruling towards Singapore having legality over Pulau Batu Putih, or Pedra Branca as it should be known now that it's officially theirs. I'm left wondering, how was it that knowing Singapore had this letter, the best the Malaysian team could come up with was an excuse that "it was written at the time by the State Secretary of Johor, who had no rights to give away state land except with mandate from the Sultan of Johor, so the letter is insignificant"?
That's just lame. I have no degree in law, but even I would know that that excuse alone won't be buying you enough 'brownie points' to overwrite anything in black-and-white! It's either these 'clowns' that were sent to The Hague were too lazy to do the extra 'assignments' that came with the 'homework', or worse; they weren't even aware of the existence of this letter!
Today, the reality is that we've lost something that is supposed to be ours, to another country. What's worse is that we lost it not because we were cheated out of a deal or anything of the like, but we practically
GAVE IT AWAY around 55 years back, signed, sealed, delivered! And our legal team were more inclined to be mistaken as Malaysian tourists than ministers representing the country at the ICJ. There are calls for those ministers to apologize over their lack of preparation, calls for the facts they presented to be made public to determine whether they really did present a strong enough case, and even calls by some for the state of Johor to apologize to the rest of the country for giving Singapore that letter 55 years ago.
I say: It's too late. There's no point in doing all that, especially the calling for the state to apologize. What's done is done. Whatever the people want to say about the ruling, there isn't any way for them to appeal or overrule the ICJ's decision. The only way we'll ever get that island back is if Singapore writes us an almost similar letter that hands us back the sovereignty of that island. Too bad, I think Singapore wants all the space they can get. The rocks might not mean much, but the extra airspace and the waters surrounding that lighthouse will do them wonders. Now all Malaysia can do is buck up. There are other similar territorial disputes that we still haven't solved. Learn from this experience and make sure there are no stones left unturned the next time we go to court over such matters. Make sure our claims are valid and
strong. And bloody hell, make sure there aren't anymore letters that states we gave away those territories and makes us look like fools! Else, the next time something like this happens,
THE RAKYAT WON'T GIVE TWO FUCKS!
