"Tables turned'

 

 

 

It goes without saying that the Philippine government must exercise a role in the settlement since sovereign territory is involved.

In 2013, a group of 200 poorly-armed followers of Sulu Sultan Jamalul Kiram III, many brandishing ancient swords, landed in Sabah to press the claim on the territory, which resulted in the death of 56 members of the Royal Sulu Army, six civilians and 10 members of the Malaysian security force.

(photo credit to owner)

Despite the tragic outcome of the incursion, which both then Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak and President Noynoy Aquino scoffed at, it now appears that the bold effort has its reward.

The lawyers of the Sultanate convinced the French arbitral court to award $14.9 billion to the Sulu heirs, it has now been revealed, through the extensive use of a letter from a top-ranking Malaysian official who made reference to the yearly compensation that his government stopped providing after the Lahad Datu incident in 2013.

 

Malaysian legal experts admitted the 2019 letter of former attorney-general Tommy Thomas has greatly compromised the country, since it acknowledged Malaysia owing money to the Sulu Sultanate.

Sabah Law Society president Roger Chin said Thomas’ admission had put Malaysia in a tight spot in its efforts to defend itself against the Sulu claim.

The Sultanate’s lawyers also used Thomas’ memoir My Story: Justice in the Wilderness, which contained his views on the implications of the 2013 skirmish.

“That was an admission of owing money, which would certainly have been damaging,” Chin said.

In the 2019 letter to the lawyers of the Sulu heirs, Thomas also attached a copy of a 1939 judgement by the North Borneo High Court, and said Malaysia did not dispute the identity of the individuals and their right to be paid.

Thomas also expressed regret that payments to the heirs had ceased in 2013, and added that Malaysia was “now ready and willing” to pay the heirs all arrears from 2013 to 2019 amounting to 48,300 Malaysian ringgit, or P611,000, which is an amount far less than the $14.9 billion award.

What took the cake was the failure of Thomas to indicate that the letter was “without prejudice” or that it can’t be used as evidence in the legal tussle.

Thus, the contents of Thomas’ letter were “relied upon” by the Sultanate’s lawyers in their arbitration claim against Malaysia in Madrid and Paris.

Sabah Progressive Party president Yong Teck Lee added Thomas had essentially admitted that the 1878 Sulu deed was still valid and that Malaysia had been “legally erroneous in stopping the payments” after 2013.

Sulu Sultanate lawyer Salma Rasul said the descendants of Sultan Jamalul Ahlam who signed the 1878 agreement must come up with a unified position regarding the claim, following the huge award.

It goes without saying that the Philippine government must exercise a role in the settlement since sovereign territory is involved.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Report from Daily Tribune

 

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