Usaha Malaysia dalam Tuntutan Semula Kedaulatan Batu Puteh, 2014-2022 (Malaysia’s Efforts in the Reclamation of Sovereignty over Batu Puteh, 2014–2022)
Abstract
In an effort to reclaim national sovereignty over Batu Puteh, the Barisan Nasional government led by Najib Abdul Razak, the sixth Prime Minister of Malaysia, officially filed an application for revision and interpretation of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) judgment in 2017. However, this legal initiative was halted when the Pakatan Harapan (PH) government under the leadership of Dr. Mahathir Mohamad decided to withdraw the application for revision in 2018. This article examines the legal efforts undertaken by the Barisan Nasional government to restore sovereignty over Batu Puteh and analyses the challenges faced in realising this endeavour. Official documents from the International Court of Justice, such as Malaysia’s “Application for Revision,” are reviewed to understand the fundamental basis of Malaysia’s claim. Additionally, this article scrutinises the report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry concerning the rationale behind the decision to withdraw the application. The study finds that the withdrawal by the Pakatan Harapan government was based on the assessment that the new facts presented in the application were not sufficiently strong to restore sovereignty over Batu Puteh. Furthermore, the high estimated cost of litigation was also a contributing factor to the withdrawal decision.
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