Singapore's Pedra Branca, Malaysia's Pulau Batu Puteh

A granite outcrop in the Singapore Straits near the South China Sea, where frequent visits by seabirds made it look white because of their droppings. That's how it got its Bahasa Melayu name Pulau Batu Puteh or island of the white rock.

Back in 1847, the British took possession of the island, thinking that it was terra nullius or no man's land. They called the island Pedra Branca and built what is now the Horseburg Lighthouse.

For over 150 years, Great Britain, and later its successor Singapore, continued operating the lighthouse.

Malaysia, in 1979, published a map of its territories, which, for the first time, included Pedra Branca as one of their own. The map extended 12 miles from the coast. This was seen as a preemptive action to changes in the then to be formalized UN Convention on Law of the Sea.

To maintain good bilateral ties, Singapore and Malaysia decided to finally settle the case and brought it before the International Court of Justice in The Hague, Netherlands.

Malaysia claimed that it has the original title to the island, possessed by the Sultanate of Johor since it establishment in 1512. The original title was said to have been passed on to the State of Johor and later to the Federation of Malaya, which Johor joined in 1948. Malaysia argues that Pulau Batu Puteh is the center of Johor's ancient maritime empire, and thus, has always been a part of the state.

For Singapore, it maintained that Pedra Branca was terra nullius and that its continuous display of state authority, operation of the lighthouse as well as naval patrols around the island, from the time of the British up to the present. Singapore also presented in court a 1953 letter to the British authorites, from a top Johor civil servant, which stated that "Johore does not claim ownership of Pedra Branca."

Malaysia argued that Singapore's display of "stately authority" is not an exercise of sovereignty, they just merely operates the lighthouse. Malaysia went further when it cited an 1844 letter which claims the Johor rulers granted permission to the British to build and operate the lighthouse.

Singapore asked Malaysia to come up with any historical document that mentioned the island by name and specified that it is included in the Sultanate of Johor. Malaysia failed to provide this in court.

The hearings are over and the court is expected to come up with a decision next year.

Photo courtesy of oiseauxbleu!

Tags: Singapore, Pedra Branca, Malaysia, Pulau Batu Puteh, International Court of Justice