7/19/2016

SouthChinaSeaverdictHowdoesitaffectMalaysia|AstroAwani

Togglenavigation

BM
ENG

BM
ENG

News
Malaysia
World
Business
Sports
Entertainment
Technology
Lifestyle
Politics
Opinion
Photos
Latest
Malaysia
World
Business
Sports
Entertainment
Technology
Lifestyle
Automotive

Videos
Latest
Malaysia
World
http://english.astroawani.com/malaysianews/southchinaseaverdicthowdoesitaffectmalaysia111289

1/19

7/19/2016

SouthChinaSeaverdictHowdoesitaffectMalaysia|AstroAwani

Business
Sports
Entertainment
Technology
Lifestyle
Automotive
LiveTV
Shows
KiniTrending
Apps
More...
Car
Drebar
Intrend
Style
Ingear
GadgetNation
GST
InPerson

search...

News|Malaysia

SouthChinaSeaverdict:HowdoesitaffectMalaysia?
http://english.astroawani.com/malaysianews/southchinaseaverdicthowdoesitaffectmalaysia111289

2/19

7/19/2016

SouthChinaSeaverdictHowdoesitaffectMalaysia|AstroAwani

MohdHazmiMohdRusli,AstroAwani| July18,201607:19MYT

HowfarshouldMalaysiagoindefendingit'ssovereigntyandsovereignrightsovertheSouthChinaSea?
MalaysiaislocatedsmackinthemiddleofSoutheastAsiaborderingtheSouthChinaSea.
Currently,MalaysiaisclaimingmaritimeareasintheSouthChinaSeawithfiveothercountriesnamelyIndonesia,Brunei,Vietnam,thePhilippines
andtoacertainextent,China.
Recently,thePermanentCourtofArbitration(PCA)decidedagainstthelargeChineseclaimovertheSouthChinaSeaviathePeoplesRepublicsso
calledninedashedline.

http://english.astroawani.com/malaysianews/southchinaseaverdicthowdoesitaffectmalaysia111289

3/19

7/19/2016

SouthChinaSeaverdictHowdoesitaffectMalaysia|AstroAwani

TribunalrulesagainstBeijinginSouthChinaSeadispute
SohowdoesthisaffectMalaysia?

SouthChinaSea
AsprescribedbytheLOSC,anyStatemayclaimupto12nauticalmilesofterritorialseaandupto200nauticalmilesofEEZandcontinentalshelf
area.
MUSTREAD:SouthChinaSea:Factsonadecadeslongdispute
ThemaritimeclaimsovertheSouthChinaSeaareasshowninthefollowingFigure1:
http://english.astroawani.com/malaysianews/southchinaseaverdicthowdoesitaffectmalaysia111289

4/19

7/19/2016

SouthChinaSeaverdictHowdoesitaffectMalaysia|AstroAwani

Figure1.TheOverlappingClaimsovertheSouthChinaSea(ModifiedfromGoogleMaps)Legend:Yellow(Malaysia),Green(Brunei),Orange
(Vietnam),DarkBrown(Philippines),Red(China)
Nevertheless,ChinasclaimisalittlepeculiarwheretheBeijinggovernmentactuallyclaimssovereigntyoverareasenclosedwithintheninedashed
lineindicatedinFigure2.
BeijingcontendsthatthesewatershistoricallybelongtothemandthereforeshouldremainunderChinesesovereignty.

http://english.astroawani.com/malaysianews/southchinaseaverdicthowdoesitaffectmalaysia111289

5/19

7/19/2016

SouthChinaSeaverdictHowdoesitaffectMalaysia|AstroAwani

Figure2:ChinasSelfproclaimedNinedashedline(ModifiedfromGoogleMaps)

TheSpratlyIslands
TheSpratlyIslands,anarchipelagoconsistingofmorethan750reefs,islets,atolls,caysandislandsareenclosedwithinthelinesclaimedbyChinain
theSouthChinaSea.
Historically,thisarchipelagobelongedtotheformerJapaneseempireuntiltheendofWorldWarIIin1945.
http://english.astroawani.com/malaysianews/southchinaseaverdicthowdoesitaffectmalaysia111289

6/19

7/19/2016

SouthChinaSeaverdictHowdoesitaffectMalaysia|AstroAwani

TheJapaneserelinquishedthesovereigntyovertheseislandsviathePeaceTreatyofSanFranciscosignedbetweenJapanandtheAlliedPowersin
1951,withoutnamingthesuccessorStatestoit.
TheSpratlyIslandsaregeographicallylocatedclosertotheSoutheastAsianclaimantStatesifcomparedtoChina.
However,basedonhistoricalreasons,ChinaputitsclaimonalloftheSpratly,whicharemorepopularlydescribedasNanshaIslandsbytheChinese.
Anumberofcountrieshavedisputedtheninedashedlineasgoingagainstthespiritofinternationallaw.
TheUnitedStateshavenowstartedtoboostfreedomofnavigationoperationsintheSouthChinaSeatodemonstratethatwaterspaceandtheair
aboveitisinternational.
Ontheotherhand,ChinahasstartedanumberofreclamationworksontheSpratlyasadisplayofeffectivitaeoverthesemaritimefeatures.
ThePhilippinesfiledacaseagainstChinaon22January2013tothePermanentCourtofArbitration(PCA)asallowedinArticle287oftheLOSC.
TheBeijinggovernmenthowever,refusedtoacceptthearbitrationinstitutedbythePhilippines.
Nevertheless,thisdoesnotmeanthatthePCAcouldnotinitiateproceedingsasrequestedbyManila.
ThePCA,on12July2016ruledunanimouslythatthesocalledninedashedlineclaimedbyChinaonthebasisofhistoricalrightsareinvalidunder
internationallaw.
TheChinesegovernmentwasalsorequestedtostopfurtheractivitiesintheSouthChinaSea.
ThedecisionofthePCAisfinal.
AsthiswasaunilateraldecisionmadebythePCA,Beijinghasdecidedtorejecttheruling.

http://english.astroawani.com/malaysianews/southchinaseaverdicthowdoesitaffectmalaysia111289

7/19

7/19/2016

SouthChinaSeaverdictHowdoesitaffectMalaysia|AstroAwani

Chinarejectstribunaldecision
HowMalaysiaisaffected
AsshowninFigure1,thesocalledninedashedlineaffectsmaritimeareasintheMalaysianstatesofSabahandSarawaksignificantly.
Asaresultofthisninedashedlineclaim,theChineseauthoritiesinNovember2015werereportedtohaveencrochedBetingPatinggiAli(South
LuconiaShoals)whenfishermenfromMiriwerechasedawaybyChinesecoastguard.
MalaysiainsistedthatBetingPatinggiAli(locatedabout134nauticalmilesor250kmawayfromMiri)anditssurroundingareasarewithin
MalaysiasEEZbyincreasingthenumberofpatrolsinthatarea.

http://english.astroawani.com/malaysianews/southchinaseaverdicthowdoesitaffectmalaysia111289

8/19

7/19/2016

SouthChinaSeaverdictHowdoesitaffectMalaysia|AstroAwani

Figure3:ThelocationofBetingPatinggiAli(Source:ModifiedfromGoogleMaps)
ThedecisionofthePCAmayprovideanadvantageforMalaysiaastheninedashedlineclaimhasbeendeclaredinvalidunderinternationallaw.
Puttingthisninedashedlineclaimaside,ChinasclaimovertheSouthChinaSeamaynot,initsentirety,encroachMalaysiasmaritimeareabased
ongeographicalproximity.
MostmaritimeareasclaimedbyMalaysiaintheSouthChinaarelocatedmorethan200nauticalmilesawayfromChinesemainland.
http://english.astroawani.com/malaysianews/southchinaseaverdicthowdoesitaffectmalaysia111289

9/19

7/19/2016

SouthChinaSeaverdictHowdoesitaffectMalaysia|AstroAwani

ThePCArulingputsMalaysiainabetterpositiontoensurethattheChineseencroachmentwouldnothappenagainasBetingPatinggiAliislocated
withintheterritorialwatersofMalaysia.
EarlierinSeptember2015,ChineseViceAdmiralYuanYubaiwerereportedtohavesaidthatSouthChinaSeabelongstoChinabasedonitsname
SouthChinaSea.
Ifthisisthecase,thentheStraitofMalaccashouldbelonginitstotalitytoMalaysia,StraitofSingaporeshouldbelongonlytoSingapore,thewhole
IndianOceanshouldremainwithIndiaandthePersianGulfwithIran.
Hence,theownershipofmaritimeareasshouldnotsolelybebasedonthenameofacountryitisaffiliatedwith.
Conclusion
ThedecisionofthePCAisamilestoneonthedevelopmentofthelawoftheseaparticularlyondisputeresolutionasitisinharmonywiththe
preambleoftheLOSCtopromotepeacefuluseofthesea.
MalaysiamaybenefitfromthesaidrulingasthePCAhasinvalidatedtheninedashedlineclaimputforwardbyChinathataffectedwatersoff
MalaysianstatesofSabahandSarawak.
DespiteChineserejection,thisrulingprovidesleveragenotonlyforthePhilippinesbutalsoforotherSoutheastAsiannationslikeMalaysia,Brunei
andVietnamtobegintalkswithChina.
ItiscrucialfortheclaimantStatestofindpossiblesolutions.
OneofthewaystheymayconsideristoemulatethemethodappliedintheAntarcticTreatyputtingasidethepotentialofconflictoversovereignty.
SevensovereignStateshavemadeterritorialclaimsovertheAntarcticandtheseStateweresuccesfulindemarcatingmostoftheirclaimspeacefully.
Similarly,theSouthChinaSeaisnowclaimedbysixcountriesWilltheybeabletodemarcatetheirterritorialclaimsoverthismaritimearea
amicably?

http://english.astroawani.com/malaysianews/southchinaseaverdicthowdoesitaffectmalaysia111289

10/19

7/19/2016

SouthChinaSeaverdictHowdoesitaffectMalaysia|AstroAwani

Beijingwarnsagainst'cradleofwar'inSouthChinaSea
Ifpeacefulmaritimedemarcationisnotanoption,theclaimantStatesmayconsiderdeclaringthedisputedSouthChinaSeaareaasacommonjoint
developmentareawheretheresourcescouldbesharedequitablyamongtheStatesconcerned.
Inaddition,aseffectiveoccupationoreffectivitaeisimportantparticularlyinacknowledgmentofsovereigntyindisputedareas,Malaysiashould
continuesendingpatrolships,hoistingMalaysianflagsonmaritimefeatures,conductingsurveillanceaswellasencouraginglocalfishermentofishin
andaroundthecontentiouszone.
MalaysianshavetostayunitedasonepeopleindefendingitssovereigntyandsovereignrightsovertheSouthChinaSea.
MUSTREAD:MalaysiacallsforeffectiveimplementationoftheDOC,COC
TheunwarrantedstatementmadebyanirresponsiblememberofalocalpoliticalpartythatSouthChinaSeabelongstoChinashouldnotbe
http://english.astroawani.com/malaysianews/southchinaseaverdicthowdoesitaffectmalaysia111289

11/19

7/19/2016

SouthChinaSeaverdictHowdoesitaffectMalaysia|AstroAwani

tolerated.
SouthChinaSeabelongstoallclaimantStatesandshouldbesharedinawaypermittedbyinternationallaw.

SouthChinaSeaisnotChina'stoclaim

MohdHazmiMohdRusli(Ph.D)isaseniorlectureratUniversitiSainsIslamMalaysiaandavisitingprofessorattheSchoolofLaw,FarEastern
FederalUniversity,Vladivostok,Russia.
*ThelinesdrawninFigures1and2areforillustrationspurposesanddonotrepresenttheexactmaritimeareasclaimedbytheStatesconcerned.
ViewsexpressedarepersonallythoseoftheauthoranddonotnecessarilyreflectthoseofAstroAWANI.

http://english.astroawani.com/malaysianews/southchinaseaverdicthowdoesitaffectmalaysia111289

12/19

7/19/2016

SouthChinaSeaverdictHowdoesitaffectMalaysia|AstroAwani

Tags:SouthChinaSea,Spratly,maritimeborderarbitration,ASEAN,China,PCA,Hazmi

RelatedStories

FivedrowntryingtorescuewomaninChinasuicidebid

Datefor2017KualaLumpurSEAGamestobefinalisednextweekKhairy

Tropicalstormkills21inChina,13missing

ASEANtokeepmumonSouthChinaSearuling:diplomats

http://english.astroawani.com/malaysianews/southchinaseaverdicthowdoesitaffectmalaysia111289

13/19

7/19/2016

SouthChinaSeaverdictHowdoesitaffectMalaysia|AstroAwani

SouthChinaSea:MalaysiacanplaykeyroleinbringingChinatonegotiatingtable
FROMAROUNDTHEWEB

5TipsforForexTradingthat
EveryInvestorShouldKnow

HowToLearnAnyLanguage
WithAnApp
Babbel

5BootstrappingStrategies
EveryStartupShouldBe
Using

How3normalguyslearneda
newlanguagein7days

TopFiveFreeBusinessApps
YouveNeverHeardAbout.

Babbel

Webiot

Over100nudewomenpose
againstTrumpinCleveland

Daish:IGPadmitsreceiving
newsecuritythreat

UnusualBusinessIdeasThatWork

ALSOONASTROAWANI

Pupilsinjuredbyflying
objectsinstormincident

Teacherhadsexwithher
student'onalmostadaily
basis,'policesay

Policemankilled,wifeinjured
inaccidentonNorthSouth
Expressway

Recommendedby

http://english.astroawani.com/malaysianews/southchinaseaverdicthowdoesitaffectmalaysia111289

14/19

7/19/2016

SouthChinaSeaverdictHowdoesitaffectMalaysia|AstroAwani

RelatedStories

FivedrowntryingtorescuewomaninChinasuicidebid

Datefor2017KualaLumpurSEAGamestobefinalisednextweekKhairy

Tropicalstormkills21inChina,13missing

http://english.astroawani.com/malaysianews/southchinaseaverdicthowdoesitaffectmalaysia111289

15/19

7/19/2016

SouthChinaSeaverdictHowdoesitaffectMalaysia|AstroAwani

ASEANtokeepmumonSouthChinaSearuling:diplomats

SouthChinaSea:MalaysiacanplaykeyroleinbringingChinatonegotiatingtable

Latest
popular

JudgeallowsCosbytosuerapeaccuserovertweets1hourago
ErdoganfoeGulendismissesTurkeyextraditionbid1hourago
PSDopenssecondfloodevacuationcentreatTelukKumbar2hoursago
TurnbullsworninasAustralia'sPM3hoursago
FlashfloodinTelukBahangduetopoordrainagesystem3hoursago
Daishthreat:PolicetotightensecurityatKLIA,klia2entrances4hoursago
5thingswelearnedaboutupcomingmoviesfromthisyear'sStarWarsCelebration4hoursago
NorthKoreafiresthreeballisticmissiles:SouthKorea5hoursago
Over100nudewomenposeagainstTrumpinCleveland
Malaysia'sKhairulIdhamPawiwinsGermanMoto3
PeroduaBezzataggedfromRM37,300,eyes7,600unitsmonthlysale
Indianrapesurvivorisallegedlyrapedagainbythesamefivemen
BankNegaracutsOPRto3%:Howwillitimpactyou?
WomansuffersinjuriesafterbeingrobbedbytaxidriverinSubangJaya
'IhaveapendrivewithinfoimplicatingFAM'TMJ

http://english.astroawani.com/malaysianews/southchinaseaverdicthowdoesitaffectmalaysia111289

16/19

7/19/2016

SouthChinaSeaverdictHowdoesitaffectMalaysia|AstroAwani

INSTAGRAMS
by@501awani
2,702photos

236,855followers

PoweredbyICONOSQUARE

search...

News
Malaysia
World
Business
Sports
Entertainment
Technology
Opinion
Photos
http://english.astroawani.com/malaysianews/southchinaseaverdicthowdoesitaffectmalaysia111289

17/19

7/19/2016

SouthChinaSeaverdictHowdoesitaffectMalaysia|AstroAwani

Videos
Infographics
General
AboutUs
Careers
Investor
TermsofUse
Sitemap

Connect
ContactUs
Apps
RSS
UWartawan
FollowUs

search...

Facebook
Twitter
Youtube
Instagram

2016AstroAwaniNetworkSdn.Bhd.
(535275D)AllRightsReserved.

http://english.astroawani.com/malaysianews/southchinaseaverdicthowdoesitaffectmalaysia111289

18/19

7/19/2016

SouthChinaSeaverdictHowdoesitaffectMalaysia|AstroAwani

http://english.astroawani.com/malaysianews/southchinaseaverdicthowdoesitaffectmalaysia111289

19/19