Senator for revival of claim on Sabah

Senator Manuel Villar has called for the revival of the country's claim on Sabah, Malaysia, adding that this should be the government's response to the alleged inhuman treatment of undocumented Filipino migrants who are being driven away from that area.

"Technically, Sabah belongs to the Philippines. We just gave up our claim. We should revive our claim now," said Villar, chairperson of the senate foreign affairs committee.

"Malaysia has never given the Philippines due importance. We are neighbours. We treat them like neighbours. They should treat us like neighbours," Villar noted.

Meanwhile, Press Secretary, Ignacio Bunye, said reports of inhuman treatment of Filipinos who are being deported from Sabah, Malaysia, have renewed interest on the part of the Philippine government to pursue its claim to Sabah.

"The claim has not been dropped. It has been on the back burner. But I'm sure that in view of the current situation, there's a renewed interest in such a claim," Bunye stated.

Malaysia and the Philippines have been at odds over territorial rights to Sabah, formerly known as North Borneo. The island is south-west of the Philippine archipelago.

Leaders of Muslim communities in southern Philippines have been raising the urgency of pushing the claim to Sabah, in light of the ongoing deportation issue.

Manila's claim over Sabah is based on a historical document which says the Sultan of Sulu acquired sovereignty over North Borneo from the Sultan of Brunei in the early 17th century, according to Philippine historian, Teodoro A. Agoncillo.

The Sultan of Sulu only leased it to the British who, in turn, gave it to Malaysia when the latter got its independence from the British. "It was never returned to us even after we tried to reclaim it," noted Agoncillo.

The claim of the Sultanate of Sulu on Sabah is pending resolution at the United Nations, said Abraham Idjirani, spokesman of Sulu Sultan Ismail Kiram.

"The Malaysian authorities will move heaven and earth to deport all Filipinos because of the pending UN resolution," noted Idjirani.

In 1963, former President Diosdado Macapagal signed an accord with the Malaysian leadership, to wait for the UN to decide on the sovereignty of Sabah. Sources said the UN might allow a referendum for residents to choose Malaysia or the Philippines for sovereignty in Sabah.

Since there are many Filipino-Muslims in the area, there is a possibility that many residents would choose Philippine sovereignty over Sabah, said the same source.

Sabah's 2.5 million population is believed to be composed of 55 per cent Filipino-Muslims. Another source said there are an estimated 500,000 undocumented Filipinos in Sabah.

Thousands of Filipinos from the southern Philippines migrated to Sabah without proper travel papers for better livelihood prospects.

Senator Ralph Recto said Filipino-Muslims in Sabah helped elect Yong Teck Lee as the island's chief minister in 1999.

Yong, however, was ordered by the high court in Kota Kinabalu to vacate his post when his political opponents charged that he had won because Filipino immigrants in Sabah were issued Malaysian identity cards that allowed them to vote.