Legal fireworks over Sabah

The government should call Malaysia’s attention to its recent move in classifying a descendant of the Sultanate of Sulu as a terrorist, as part of measures to safeguard national sovereignty amid the Sabah dispute.

The country’s Home Ministry designated Muhammad Fuad Abdullah Kiram as a terrorist under the country’s anti-money laundering and terrorism laws. Fuad is one of the Sulu group’s eight members claiming to be the heirs of the Sulu sultan.

A federal gazette entry dated 6 April, listed the 69-year-old Filipino who had been part of the Royal Sulu Force, as a terrorist for having figured in the 2013 Lahad Datu assault.

The claimants secured a historic $14.9 billion award against Malaysia in 2022 over their claims to the state of Sabah, only to have it overturned by a court in Paris last March.

Those in the know say Malaysia’s approach now “is to go on the offensive” against the Sulu heirs’ claim, a change from its previous approach of “firefighting.”

The Sultanate’s heirs’ strategy, on the other hand, is to pursue the claim in other venues, such as the International Court of Justice.

The tribunal will refer the Petition of the Sultanate of Sulu to the United Nations General Assembly, which is the proper forum to tackle the case once the United States, China, or the Philippines endorses the petition.

Philippe Couvreur, ICJ registrar, in a reply to the Sultanate of Sulu dated 20 October 2024, a copy of which was obtained by the DAILY TRIBUNE, declared that Articles 35 and 34 of the Statute of the ICJ provide that such a case will be deliberated by the UN General Assembly, not by the ICJ.

Abraham Idjirani, convenor and spokesman of the Mindanao Sulu Unification Movement (MSUM), said at least two of the five permanent United Nations Security Council (UNSC) members — China and the US — have existing treaties with the Sultanate.

The other permanent members of the UN body are France, the Russian Federation, and the United Kingdom.

He said the reply of the ICJ specifically mentioned the need for an endorsement from a UN member for deliberation in the General Assembly.

“This is to inform you of the provisions contained in Articles 35 and 34 of the Statute of the International Court of Justice; the Sultanate of Sulu and North Borneo, or the Bangsa Suluk Nation, just needs one nation to endorse its 2004 Petition for deliberations in the UN General Assembly,” Couvreur said.

The Sulu Sultanate’s 2004 petition, submitted to then-UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, which adhered to the principle of peaceful settlement, declared the repossession of North Borneo (Sabah) from the Federation of Malaysia’s occupation and demanded Malaysia pay $25 billion for the use of its natural resources since its illegal occupation in 1963.