International Court Of Justice Begins Hearing On Pedra Branca

Source : The Channel NewsAsia, 06 November 2007

THE HAGUE: The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has begun the hearing on the sovereignty of Pedra Branca and its outcrops of Middle Rocks and South Ledge on Tuesday.

According to Ambassador-At-Large Professor Tommy Koh, who is also serving as the agent of Singapore for this case, the Singapore team is well-prepared for this session.

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International Court of Justice begins hearing on Pedra Branca

He said the team has been working hard on the case and is looking forward to presenting its arguments in court.

The team's morale is also very high, he added.

The island, about the size of a football field, is located at the eastern entrance of the Singapore Strait.

Singapore has exercised sovereignty over the island and its outcrops since 1847, when the British colonial government built the Horsburgh Lighthouse there.

In 1979, Malaysia published a map of its territories, and included Pedra Branca.

Singapore objected to the move and argued that it has sovereignty over the island because of various reasons, one of which is that it conducts numerous activities there.

The hearing comes over four years after Singapore and Malaysia referred the issue to the ICJ.

The Singapore delegation includes Deputy Prime Minister and Law Minister S Jayakumar and Chief Justice, Chan Sek Keong.

Attorney-General Chao Hick Tin and a team of international legal counsels are also part of the team.

The hearing comes after three rounds of written pleadings exchanged between Singapore and Malaysia from March 2004 to November 2005.

The Singapore team will get to present their case first for the initial four days, and Malaysia will do their presentation on the following four days. Time will be given for both sides to rebut the statements afterwards.

The hearing is set for about three weeks. - CNA/ac


Background on Pedra Branca

Pedra Branca South Ledge

Pedra Branca
Located some 24 nautical miles to the east of Singapore, Pedra Branca commands the entire eastern approach to the Straits of Singapore, through which almost 900 ships pass daily. The island, also known as Pulau Batu Puteh, sits at the eastern entrance of the Straits of Singapore and houses the Horsburgh Lighthouse, the oldest feature on the island which was built on the island by the British between 1847 and 1851. The island also comprises Middle Rocks which are two clusters of rocks situated 0.6 nautical miles south of Pedra Branca, and South Ledge, a rock formation which can be seen only at low-tide, that sits 2.1 nautical miles south of Pedra Branca.

The Dispute
In 1979, Malaysia published a map claiming the island. In response, Singapore lodged a formal protest with Malaysia, in early 1980.
As the issue has been a sore point in bilateral relations, both Singapore and Malaysia decided to put the dispute before the International Court of Justice in the Hague. This suggestion was first made by Singapore in 1989 and agreed to in 1994 by Malaysia . The two countries then agreed in 1998 on a Special Agreement that was needed to submit the dispute to the ICJ. The Special Agreement was signed in February 2003 before the ICJ was formally notified in July.

The Case
Singapore and Malaysia have asked the International Court of Justice to decide on who has sovereignty over Pedra Branca, Middle Rocks and South Ledge. It is Singapore's case that sovereignty over Middle Rocks and South Ledge should belong to the country that has sovereignty over Pedra Branca.

Between 2004 and 2005, both Singapore and Malaysia submitted to the ICJ, written documents on their case for sovereignty. The ICJ decided in May 2006 that the next stage should be held, with arguments and public hearings at the ICJ. This will take place for the most part of November.

After the close of the public hearings, the ICJ will conduct their internal deliberations on the case before a decision is made by majority vote.
The judgment which is expected to be delivered before June next year is final and without appeal.

The Teams
Singapore's delegation comprises Deputy Prime Minister, Coordinating Minister for National Security and Minister for Law Professor S. Jayakumar, Chief Justice Chan Sek Keong, Attorney-General Chao Hick Tin, and Ambassador-at-Large Professor Tommy Koh, who is also serving as the Agent of Singapore for this case. Also part of the Singapore delegation are an experienced team of international legal Counsel, namely, Mr Ian Brownlie Q.C., Professor Alain Pellet, Mr Rodman Bundy and Ms Loretta Malintoppi.

Malaysia's delegation will be headed by Tan Sri Abdul Kadir Mohamad, who is Ambassador at Large, and also the Prime Minister's Adviser on Foreign Affairs. He will be Malaysia's agent for the case while Datuk Noor Farida Ariffin, the Malaysian Ambassador to the Netherlands, will act as co-agent. The Malaysian legal team will be headed by Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail,along with Sir Elihu Lauterpacht and James Crawford, professors in International Law at the Cambridge University; Nicolaas Jan Schrijver, professor of Public International Law, Leiden University; Marcelo G. Kohen, professor of International Law, the Graduate Institute of International Studies, Geneva; and Penelope Nevill, college lecturer,Downing College, Cambridge University.

The judges for the International Court of Justice are Raymond Ranjeva (Madagascar), Shi Jiuyong (China),Abdul G. Koroma (Sierra Leone), Gonzalo Parra Aranguren (Venezuela), Thomas Buergenthal (US), Hisashi Owada (Japan), Bruno Simma (Germany), Peter Tomka(Slovakia), Ronny Abraham (France), Kenneth Keith (New Zealand), Bernardo Sepulveda Amor (Mexico), Mohamed Bennouna (Morocco) and Leonid Skotnikov(Russia).