Malaysia's 130-year silence 'speaks volumes'

The Straits Times, November 7, 2007


AMBASSADOR-at-Large Tommy Koh yesterday told an international court that Malaysia's 130-year silence on Pedra Branca spoke louder than words.

Outlining Singapore's case before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), Professor Koh said before the British took lawful possession of Pedra Branca in 1847 and constructed a lighthouse there, no other state had ever laid claim to it.

Singapore's title to the island is based on that 1847 act, he said in a 30-minute speech that opened yesterday's three-hour hearing.

After the lighthouse was built in 1851, Britain and later Singapore confirmed and maintained the title by the 'continuous, open and effective display of state authority' on Pedra Branca and its territorial waters, he added.

How it did so will be elaborated on by Singapore's foreign counsel over the next few days.

'A key feature of this case is the constant stream of Singapore's acts of administration in relation to Pedra Branca, contrasted with the complete absence of Malaysian effectivites on Pedra Branca or within its territorial waters, and with Malaysia's silence in the face of all these state activities of Singapore,' he said.

'Such silence on Malaysia's part is significant and must be taken to mean that Malaysia never regarded Pedra Branca as her territory,' he added.

The word 'effectivites' is a legal term that refers to the activities of a state on territory which it treats as its own.

In an earlier dispute which Malaysia and Indonesia took before the ICJ, the court ruled in Malaysia's favour on the ownership of Pulau Sipadan and Ligatan on the basis of its effectivites on the islands.

Unlike Malaysia, Singapore has not appeared before the ICJ before.

This being its first appearance, Prof Koh made it a point to stress the importance Singapore attached to international law.

'Singapore has worked with other like-minded states to strengthen the rule of law in the world,' he told the court's 16-member bench.

'We believe in the peaceful settlement of disputes.'

He said Singapore believes states should attempt to settle their differences through consultations, negotiations and mediation.

However, when a dispute could not be settled by those means, it believes that instead of allowing the matter to adversely affect bilateral ties, it is better to submit the matter to a binding third-party procedure, namely arbitration or adjudication.

'It is for this reason that Singapore and Malaysia have agreed to submit our dispute to this honourable court,' he said.

LYDIA LIM