The Decades of Sultanate Dispute
Watch
out for my Eagles Eyes column in the Manila Standard tomorrow. It is on
the events unfolding in Sabah and concludes with the following
paragraphs:
"There was a reason that the decision was taken,
after Merdeka, Jabidah, and Marcos’ fall, to simply leave the issue
dormant, that there were dangers attendant to the claim. Should the
dispute turn ugly, it will have unwelcome consequences for the
Philippines, Malaysia, and our major regional and global allies. It
could undermine the mutual non-intervention foundations of ASEAN,
threatening the organization’s integrity in the face of Chinese
territorial ambitions, and that country’s growing rivalry with the
United States. Other countries might be forced to take sides, or at the
least distance themselves from Manila and Kuala Lumpur for the duration
of the dispute. Our growing economy would be harmed by prolonged
conflict, particularly if it turns violent (again, even if short of
war).
We pray that such a
worst-case scenario would not come to pass, now or in the future. But
the truth is that the Sabah dispute may never be satisfactorily
resolved, certainly not within our lifetimes, without grave diplomatic
consequences. The Philippines’ claim to the territory remains (dormant
or not), but so do the rest of our diplomatic, security, and economic
priorities. In the wake of the past few weeks, the priority of the
moment is the need to first reestablish trust—with Malaysia and, yes,
with the Sultanate of Sulu. It is through this trust that we hope to
work with the followers of Kiram for a solution to their grievances
through more productive, less dramatic means. It is through this trust
that we hope to restore status quo ante with Kuala Lumpur, so that if we
do discuss Sabah in the future (and perhaps we should), it will be in
an amicable, respectful atmosphere, between peoples as well as
governments.
Our mutually tangled histories, whether as the
countries of the Philippines and Malaysia, or the former colonies of
Britain, Spain, and the United States, or the pre-colonial Sultanates of
Sulu and Brunei, need not doom our shared futures."
Watch
out for my Eagles Eyes column in the Manila Standard tomorrow. It is on
the events unfolding in Sabah and concludes with the following
paragraphs:
"There was a reason that the decision was taken, after Merdeka, Jabidah, and Marcos’ fall, to simply leave the issue dormant, that there were dangers attendant to the claim. Should the dispute turn ugly, it will have unwelcome consequences for the Philippines, Malaysia, and our major regional and global allies. It could undermine the mutual non-intervention foundations of ASEAN, threatening the organization’s integrity in the face of Chinese territorial ambitions, and that country’s growing rivalry with the United States. Other countries might be forced to take sides, or at the least distance themselves from Manila and Kuala Lumpur for the duration of the dispute. Our growing economy would be harmed by prolonged conflict, particularly if it turns violent (again, even if short of war).
We pray that such a worst-case scenario would not come to pass, now or in the future. But the truth is that the Sabah dispute may never be satisfactorily resolved, certainly not within our lifetimes, without grave diplomatic consequences. The Philippines’ claim to the territory remains (dormant or not), but so do the rest of our diplomatic, security, and economic priorities. In the wake of the past few weeks, the priority of the moment is the need to first reestablish trust—with Malaysia and, yes, with the Sultanate of Sulu. It is through this trust that we hope to work with the followers of Kiram for a solution to their grievances through more productive, less dramatic means. It is through this trust that we hope to restore status quo ante with Kuala Lumpur, so that if we do discuss Sabah in the future (and perhaps we should), it will be in an amicable, respectful atmosphere, between peoples as well as governments.
Our mutually tangled histories, whether as the countries of the Philippines and Malaysia, or the former colonies of Britain, Spain, and the United States, or the pre-colonial Sultanates of Sulu and Brunei, need not doom our shared futures."
"There was a reason that the decision was taken, after Merdeka, Jabidah, and Marcos’ fall, to simply leave the issue dormant, that there were dangers attendant to the claim. Should the dispute turn ugly, it will have unwelcome consequences for the Philippines, Malaysia, and our major regional and global allies. It could undermine the mutual non-intervention foundations of ASEAN, threatening the organization’s integrity in the face of Chinese territorial ambitions, and that country’s growing rivalry with the United States. Other countries might be forced to take sides, or at the least distance themselves from Manila and Kuala Lumpur for the duration of the dispute. Our growing economy would be harmed by prolonged conflict, particularly if it turns violent (again, even if short of war).
We pray that such a worst-case scenario would not come to pass, now or in the future. But the truth is that the Sabah dispute may never be satisfactorily resolved, certainly not within our lifetimes, without grave diplomatic consequences. The Philippines’ claim to the territory remains (dormant or not), but so do the rest of our diplomatic, security, and economic priorities. In the wake of the past few weeks, the priority of the moment is the need to first reestablish trust—with Malaysia and, yes, with the Sultanate of Sulu. It is through this trust that we hope to work with the followers of Kiram for a solution to their grievances through more productive, less dramatic means. It is through this trust that we hope to restore status quo ante with Kuala Lumpur, so that if we do discuss Sabah in the future (and perhaps we should), it will be in an amicable, respectful atmosphere, between peoples as well as governments.
Our mutually tangled histories, whether as the countries of the Philippines and Malaysia, or the former colonies of Britain, Spain, and the United States, or the pre-colonial Sultanates of Sulu and Brunei, need not doom our shared futures."
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