CHALLENGING the International Court of Justice’s decision over the sovereignty of Pulau Batu Puteh based on new evidence is a norm and doesn’t go against international practices, Penang Deputy Chief Minister II P. Ramasamy said today.

According to Ramasamy, Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s reason for withdrawing Malaysia’s appeal was a “convenient way to wiggle out of the situation”.

“His reason that Malaysia had to respect an international agreement with Singapore seems to be an afterthought. As everyone knows, Dr Mahathir has nothing but contempt and venom for Singapore,” Ramasamy said in a statement.

“He has to be blamed for abandoning the rocky island of Batu Puteh.”

Dr Mahathir’s explanation also seemed to suggest he believes Singapore has sovereignty over the sand bank, he added.

In a blogpost yesterday, the former prime minister said Malaysia will be branded a pariah if it does not uphold the ICJ decision.

He said the matter was referred to the ICJ and both Malaysia and Singapore agreed in to abide by the court’s decision.

The Langkawi MP also said Johor had written to Singapore admitting that Pulau Batu Puteh does not belong to the state.

Ramasamy said, even if Malaysia did not stand a chance in winning the appeal, politically it made sense to file anyway.

On May 9, 2003, Malaysia and Singapore agreed to submit their dispute about sovereignty over 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 belonged 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.

However, shortly after Pakatan Harapan won the 2018 general election, Dr Mahathir announced that Malaysia would accept the ruling and would not pursue the matter.

The present government has established a special task force to look into that decision. – October 21, 2021.