'Malaysia has no evidence to back up claim'

Quoting from historians, S'pore lawyers debunk its claim to ownership dating back to the 16th century

The Straits Times, November 7, 2007
By Lydia Lim, Senior Political Correspondent


THE HAGUE (NETHERLANDS) - MALAYSIA'S assertion that it had history on its side in its claim to Pedra Branca was the subject of a robust rebuttal by Singapore yesterday.

As the hearing on the sovereignty of the rocky outcrop began here before the International Court of Justice, Singapore's top legal eagles sought to debunk in no uncertain terms the historical basis to Malaysia's claim.

In some instances, its northern neighbour had even distorted history to bolster its position, Singapore's lawyers argued.

These opening arguments on Day One of the hearing were in response to written arguments that Malaysia had earlier mounted, claiming ownership dating back to the 16th century.

For every argument, Singapore's Chief Justice Chan Sek Keong and Attorney-General Chao Hick Tin produced a counter-argument.

Chief Justice Chan quoted from a range of renowned historians in a bid to show that in each case, Malaysia's interpretation of history prior to the 1847 establishment of Horsburgh lighthouse on Pedra Branca by the British, was either not backed by any available evidence or just plain wrong.

AG Chao took up the story from 1847 onwards with an extensive chronology of events all the way up to 1978.

He argued that those events showed that Singapore consistently performed various acts displaying State authority over Pedra Branca.

In all that time, its officials also expressed the view consistently that Pedra Branca was under Singapore's sovereignty.

'Malaysian officials were, on the other hand,' AG Chao said, 'equally consistent in acknowledging and recognising Singapore's title to Pedra Branca'.

It was only in 1979 that Malaysia made a formal claim to the island through the publication of its map on its territorial waters, he added.

A look at the arguments by the Singapore side yesterday, which produced maps and charts to make its case:


RECENT HISTORY: HOW SINGAPORE DEMONSTRATED OWNERSHIP
IN 1847, the British government in Singapore decided to build a lighthouse on Pedra Branca. At the laying of the Horsburgh lighthouse foundation stone in 1851, the island was described as a 'dependency of Singapore'.

In 1952 and again in 1974, the Chief Surveyor and the Marine Department of Singapore respectively wrote that Singapore was entitled to claim a territorial sea around Pedra Branca.

In the early 1970s, the Singapore Government considered reclaiming land around Pedra Branca and even called a public tender for such works in 1978.


RECENT HISTORY: HOW MALAYSIA DISCLAIMED OWNERSHIP
IN 1953, in response to an inquiry from Singapore, the Johor government stated unequivocally in a letter that 'the Johor government does not claim ownership of Pedra Branca'.

In 1962, the Federation of Malaya published two official maps which attributed Pedra Branca to Singapore.

In 1965 and 1975, Malaysia again published maps showing Pedra Branca as belonging to the republic.


CLAIM OF OWNERSHIP BEFORE 1847
MALAYSIA'S historical claim to Pedra Branca rests on its argument that the island was part of the old Johor sultanate.

In its written arguments, it portrayed the sultanate as a stable kingdom whose territorial extent remained the same throughout all phases of its history, from the 16th century right up to the 19th century, when the British arrived on the scene.

But CJ Chan quoted from the writings of well-known historians Carl Trocki and Richard Winstedt, which stated that from her foundation, the kingdom of Johor 'was in a precarious state'.

Indeed, the official 1949 Annual Report published by the Government of the State of Johor noted that by the start of the 19th century, round about the time of the British arrival in Singapore, 'the old empire was in a state of dissolution'.

Malaysia's claim also glossed over the fact that traditional Malay sovereignty was centred not on territory but on allegiance.

Therefore, 'the only reliable way to determine whether a particular territory belonged to a ruler is to find out whether the inhabitants pledged allegiance to that ruler', Mr Chan argued.

It would therefore be difficult to establish with certainty sovereignty over barren, isolated and uninhabited islands such as Pedra Branca, he added.

He also sought to debunk Malaysia's attempt to use the 1824 Anglo-Dutch treaty to back its claim, saying that it amounted to a misinterpretation of the treaty.