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Sipadan is a small island, approximately 0.03 sq.km, located about l4 nautical miles off Tanjung Tutop on the south-eastern coast of Sabah, Malaysia. It is a deep-water oceanic island separated by a t...rench from the Borneo continental shelf, and is surrounded by a coral reef. That is why the island attracts divers from all over the world, and is known as "one of the top ten diving spots." Divers can enjoy watching turtles and big open-water fish as well as colourful coral fish. On April 23, Easter Sunday of 2000, six Abu Sayaff guerillas came to Sipadan with two high-speed boats and kidnapped 10 European divers and 11 local staff. They escaped back to Philippine territory, and hid in the mountain forest in of Basilan Island. It took five months before all hostages were released in exchange for one million dollars for each foreign hostage. The kidnappers took advantage of the weak border control of the area, and the deteriorating peace and order situation in the southern Mindanao and Jolo-Sulu areas. They were, however, pushed to that kind of action as a last resort, by offensive operations by the Philippine military against MILF (Moro Islamic Liberation Front), ordered by the Estrada government. I will endeavour to shed light on the situation in Mindanao and the background of this kidnapping incident. The Malaysian and Indonesian governments had been in dispute over the possession of this island since the late 1960s, and finally agreed in 1997 to bring the case before the International Court of Justice. The court made the final decision in December, 2002 that Sipadan belongs to Malaysia. The Indonesian government honoured and accepted the decision as final and binding. This is the first case in the history of south-east Asia, and first in forty years in Asia, in which a territorial dispute was solved peacefully through the International Court of Justice. It sets a precedent and serves as an example for future interactions among countries, not only in the region but also in the whole of Asia, including Japan, which has territorial disputes with Russia over four northern islands, over Takeshima with Korea, and the Senkaku islands with China. In this essay I summarize and analyse the arguments made by respective bodies.show more
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