A REPORT by the Pulau Batu Puteh task force is expected to be ready by July or August, its head, Mohamed Apandi Ali, said.

The task force was set up last October under Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob to review the International Court of Justice’s (ICJ) decision to award the island to Singapore.

Malaysia’s bid to have the ICJ decision to award Pulau Batu Puteh to Singapore and Middle Rocks to Malaysia overturned was withdrawn by the Pakatan Harapan (PH) government in 2018.

Apandi, a former attorney-general, said the task force has completed the interim report and the process so far has been smooth, but there were several delays.

“We are going to finalise the report in late July or August,” Apandi told The Malaysian Insight.

“We are in the process. We have completed the interim report and it is progressing smoothly, even though there are hiccups, the normal red tape.”

He said cabinet approval and the Covid-19 epidemic are the main reasons for the delay.

“We were supposed to complete the report this month, but we told the minister that it is impossible because of Covid-19 and other things beyond our control,” he said.

“We have asked for an extension and received verbal approval from the cabinet.

“For example, we wanted to appoint a foreign hydrographer to determine our territorial sea, but we have to get the cabinet’s approval.

“This takes time because they have to prepare a cabinet paper first. Now, the prime minister is not around and the cabinet is not sitting. So all this must be taken into consideration,” he said, referring to the recent Hari Raya holidays and Ismail’s trip abroad for the US-Asean summit.

Another delay to the report is a court order, which granted the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) a protection order to prevent public access to documents in a suit over the sovereignty of Pulau Batu Puteh.

“That is a stumbling block. We have to remove the order and to do that, we must file an application to the court,” said Apandi.

Once the report is finalised, he said, it will be made public.

On January 31, High Court judge Rozana Ali Yusoff granted a gag order after hearing submissions from senior federal counsel Shamsul Bolhassan and lawyer Mohaji Selamat, representing Mohd Hatta Sanuri, who claimed he represents 32 million other Malaysians.

The AGC wanted the court documents to be sealed off from public access on the grounds that they are classified under the Official Secrets Act (OSA).

Hatta filed the suit last year, claiming that he was affected by the government’s decision during Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s tenure as PH prime minister to withdraw an application to review the ICJ award of sovereignty of Pulau Batu Puteh to Singapore, which calls the island Pedra Branca.

Hatta said the government had not provided an explanation for withdrawing the review application, in light of new evidence that favours Malaysia’s fresh bid.

He is seeking a court declaration for the government to pay RM10 million compensation to Malaysians over the withdrawal.

On May 9, 2003, Malaysia and Singapore agreed to submit their dispute over the sovereignty of Pulau Batu Puteh and two nearby maritime features, Middle Rocks and South Ledge, to the ICJ.

In 2008, the ICJ gave the sovereignty of Pulau Batu Puteh to Singapore. The court ruled that Malaysia owned Middle Rocks, while it refrained from awarding South Ledge to either country, stating that it belongs to the government in whose territorial waters it is located.

In July 2017, Malaysia filed a separate application requesting the ICJ to interpret the 2008 judgment on Pulau Batu Puteh.

However, shortly after PH won the 2018 general election, Dr Mahathir announced that Malaysia would accept the ICJ ruling and would not pursue the matter. – May 12, 2022.