PUTRAJAYA: No country will surrender even an inch of its soil or a small rock to another country, and what more a “great country” like Malaysia, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim says as he rues on the Pulau Batu Puteh issue.
The Prime Minister said in a national day address here on Friday (Aug 30) that the carelessness of certain parties had led to a “betrayal” of the country.
He said some countries have gone to war and lives were lost in the midst of defending their land.
He said the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) report on sovereignty issues concerning Pulau Batu Puteh will be debated within and outside of Parliament.
“So that it will be a lesson to all,” he said.
On Thursday (Aug 29), the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reforms) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said, said the RCI report on Pulau Batu Puteh, Middle Rocks and South Ledge has been presented to the Cabinet.
“The Cabinet is concerned about issues related to the country’s sovereignty and has decided that the RCI report is to be tabled in Parliament, and the recommendations debated,” she said in a statement on Thursday.
She said the report was presented by RCI chairman Tun Md Raus Sharif on Wednesday (Aug 28).
On Feb 27, Azalina said the RCI had been set up to find a resolution to the issue and move forward with improvements when handling issues involving national sovereignty, rather than assign blame to any party.
She emphasised that Malaysians, especially in Johor, deserve an explanation of the reasons and factors behind the decision not to pursue the Application for Review and Request for Interpretation at the International Court of Justice concerning the sovereignty issues.
On June 12, former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad provided testimony during the closed-door proceedings of the RCI.
On Aug 12, the RCI presented its final report to His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, King of Malaysia.
In February, the Legal Affairs Division of the Prime Minister’s Department announced that Sultan Ibrahim had consented to the establishment of the RCI.
Subsequently, it was established in accordance with the Commissions of Enquiry Act 1950.
On May 23, 2008, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Singapore holds sovereignty over Pulau Batu Puteh, while Middle Rocks, situated less than 1km away, belongs to Malaysia.
The ICJ ruled that the ownership of South Ledge, located approximately 4km from Batu Puteh, would be determined based on the delimitation of territorial waters.
On Feb 2, 2017, Malaysia filed an application to review the ICJ’s ruling.
However, in May 2018, the Pakatan Harapan government, led by Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, withdrew the application two weeks before it was scheduled to be heard on June 11.
