Month: April 2023

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What Is There To Negotiate?

The 165-meter Chinese Coast Guard cutter Zhong Guo Hai Jing 5901 is the largest coast guard vessel in the world, and was spotted loitering some 60 nautical miles off Bintulu

Malaysia is prepared to negotiate with China over a dispute between them in the South China Sea, Bernama reported on Monday, citing Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

As we are all aware, China claims virtually all of the 3.5 million sq. km of the waters of the South China Sea. Other claimants include Malaysia, Vietnam, Taiwan, Brunei and the Philippines, while Indonesia is an affected party through China’s blatant and frequent incursions.

“China is also staking claim over the area. I said as a small country that needs oil and gas resources, we have to continue, but if the condition is that there must be negotiations, then we are ready to negotiate,” he said.

Negotiate what?

Malaysia’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) is determined by Article 57 of Part V of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) that was adopted in 1982. A total of 167 countries and the European Union are parties, and that includes China.

Article 57 states that the breadth of the EEZ shall not exceed 200 nautical miles from the baselines that have been used to measure a country’s territorial waters. Our waters are very definitely more than 200 nautical miles from China’s baseline shores, in case the government, especially the Ministry of Foreign Affairs whose advice the PM depends on, doesn’t know about our EEZ.

And only Malaysia has the sovereign right to explore and exploit, conserve and manage all the natural resources within its EEZ. Not any other country. Therefore by negotiating, are we not giving clout to China’s delusional nine-dash line?

Furthermore, there is a Permanent Court of Arbitration ruling made in the Philippines v China case in 2016 that has ruled against the latter’s claim over maritime areas within the nine-dash line. The Court ruled that China not only has China exceeded what is entitled under UNCLOS, but that China, among others, has no legal basis to claim rights to resources within the nine-dash line.

It is puzzling that the government does not know this, or has forgotten about it. I am surprised that it has also forgotten that the previous Pakatan Harapan administration in 2019 filed a formal submission to the United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf, detailing information on the limits of its continental shelf, beyond its 200-nautical-mile Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). China, as always, rejected Malaysia’s claim and asserted its sovereignty and rights in the South China Sea with vague and ambiguous arguments.

If China cannot respect our rights given to us through legal means, why should we even care about what they think of our waters? Or are we so hard up for them to turn the billions in MOUs from the PM’s recent visit there into contracts?

If that is the case, are we not selling off our sovereignty like during Najjb’s administration?

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Melayu Tak Bertimbang Rasa?

Benarkah Melayu angkuh dan pinggirkan minoriti?

“Melayu Islam diingatkan tidak terlalu selesa, angkuh hingga pinggirkan minoriti.”

Begitulah bunyinya tajuk utama akhbar Utusan Malaysia yang melaporkan perhimpunan bulanan Kementerian Kewangan yang dihadiri Perdana Menteri Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

Dalam ucapan beliau, Anwar mengingatkan orang Melayu Islam supaya tidak meminggirkan kaum minoriti. Kata beliau, “Ketika lawatan saya ke Kemboja baru-baru ini, saya berbuka puasa bersama Perdana Menteri Kemboja yang menganjurkan majlis iftar dengan 6,000 umat Islam. Umat Islam di Kemboja hanya 10 peratus, tetapi diberi penghormatan dan saya juga diberi peluang memberi ucapan dan ke masjid di sana.” (Utusan Malaysia – 4 April 2023).

Tidak pelik sebuah negara bukan Islam meraikan masyarakat beragama Islam. Meraikan kaum minoriti merupakan salah satu tanda aras demokrasi bagi setiap buah negara. Sebagai contoh, kerajaan Israel yang dikenali sebagai anti-Islam juga pernah mengadakan majlis berbuka puasa.

Israel menghargai kebebasan beragama dan akan lakukan apa sahaja untuk membenarkannya – Benny Gantz

“Israel menghargai kebebasan beragama dan akan lakukan apa sahaja untuk membenarkannya,” kata Menteri Pertahanan Israel Benny Gantz tahun lepas (The Jerusalem Post – 26 April 2022).

“Saya lihat betapa pentingnya untuk kukuhkan hubungan di antara Israel dan negara-negara serantau dan kekalkan kebebasan beragama di Israel untuk penganut semua agama,” kata Menteri Luar Israel Eli Cohen semasa menganjurkan majlis berbuka puasa Ahad lepas (Jewish News Syndicate – 3 April 2023).

Saya lihat betapa pentingnya untuk kukuhkan hubungan di antara Israel dan negara-negara serantau dan kekalkan kebebasan beragama di Israel untuk penganut semua agama – Eli Cohen

Namun, apa realitinya? Pada hari Sabtu 1 April 2023, askar Israel menembak mati seorang pemuda Palestin di perkarangan Masjidil Aqsa.

Dari 18 hari hari cuti umum yang diumumkan kerajaan Kemboja, berapa harikah yang melibatkan lain-lain agama atau kaum? Jawapannya: 0.

Dari 15 hari hari cuti umum yang diumumkan kerajaan Israel, berapa harikah yang melibatkan lain-lain agama atau kaum? Jawapannya: 0.

Dari 12 hari hari cuti umum yang diumumkan kerajaan Kemboja, berapa harikah yang melibatkan lain-lain agama atau kaum? Jawapannya: 4 (tidak termasuk Thaipusam dan Good Friday).

Adakah Melayu tidak bertimbang rasa hingga wujudnya klausa-klausa dalam Perlembagaan Persekutuan yang menetapkan hak lain-lain kaum, contohnya Perkara 3(1) berhubung kebebasan beragama, Perkara 11, Perkara 152(1) dan 152(1)(a), dan juga Perkara 153?

Lihat sahaja Amerika Syarikat yang menganggap dirinya sebagai tiang seri demokrasi. Banduan Islam diberinya daging babi untuk berbuka puasa

Adakah ini bermakna Amerika Syarikat lebih bertimbang rasa berbanding Melayu Islam di Malaysia?

Saya rasa tak perlulah memperkecilkan orang Melayu dan agama Islam hanya untuk populariti. Itu namanya menghina.