JOHOR Umno leaders are trying to be heroes in the anticipation of the general election with their sudden interest in Pulau Batu Puteh, P. Ramasamy said today. 

The Penang deputy chief minister said this was why they were harping on the Pakatan Harapan (PH) government’s decision not to appeal the loss of the island to Singapore, including by threatening to sue the then prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad. 

The DAP leader said all this was part of a political mechanism to shift the blame to the short-lived PH government in general and Dr Mahathir in particular. 

“Umno leaders in Johor, particularly the newly minted Menteri Besar Hafiz Onn and State Assembly Speaker Mohd Puad Zarkashi, are crying for blood over the loss of Pulau Batu Puteh,” Ramasamy said in a statement.

“While Hafiz threatened legal action against those responsible for the loss of the island, Puad has said he would sue Dr Mahathir.

“Maybe it is about time these leaders did some research as to who was responsible for the loss of the island to Singapore in 2008.” 

He said these Umno leaders should explain why in September 1953, the Johor state secretary, in a letter to the British colonial secretariat in Singapore, withdrew the state’s claim over Pulau Batu Puteh. 

“It would make sense for the gung-ho Umno leaders like Hafiz and Puad to re-examine the state’s history in relation to the controversial rock island of Pulau Batu Puteh,” he said. 

“If the concept of terra nullius (notion of non-habitation) could not even be refuted in the legal arguments before the ICJ (International Court of Justice), I wonder about the seriousness of the Malaysian legal team. 

“Umno leaders in Johor must be careful in their euphoria of initiating legal action as they might inadvertently condemn the very state government they are representing.”  

In 2008, the ICJ recognised the sovereignty of Singapore over the island.

Subsequently, Malaysia filed an appeal but was withdrawn by the PH government under Dr Mahathir in 2018, citing reasons of cost and the prospect of not winning the case, as advised by experts. 

The present government has formed a task force headed by former attorney-general Apandi Ali to study the Pulau Batu Puteh sovereignty case. 

In recent months, loud voices have been heard against the PH government’s decision not to proceed with the appeal. 

The sultan of Johor, too, has expressed his disappointment over the loss of the island to Singapore. 

Ramasamy said Malaysia had no choice but to accept the ICJ verdict as the application to the court was a joint one with Singapore. 

“Malaysia appealed but there was a slight chance it could succeed. Right or wrong, Dr Mahathir might have withdrawn the appeal as advised without anticipating the political consequences,” he said. 

“Politically, the decision should have been left to the good office of the ICJ.” – July 1, 2022.