They aren’t chickens
their expulsion. As a prince of a country in this 21st century, he should have known that the moment he and his merry men stepped on Tanduo, an integral part of Malaysia, they had violated the national sovereignty of another country, a neighbour it may be.
The aggrieved neighbour happens to be Malaysia. This illegal intrusion of our territory is a problem between two countries in the Asean family and for the moment only the two countries concerned can solve that problem, and solve it once and for all.
I can appreciate how much more difficult it would be for our security forces to deal with the intruders, many of whom are said to be armed to the teeth, and who have said they intend to stay on our soil for good.
As a country, we are thereby placed on the horns of dilemma: what to do with these trespassers. A soft approach has been adopted to avoid bloodshed. That would be the best alternative to outright confrontation. Unlike those chickens in my garden, it is hoped that the country whose citizens have violated our sovereignty will cooperate when they are being rounded up, with as little of the ruffling of the feathers as possible.
But how long can we tolerate the impudence of the trespassers? Under the circumstances, in the name of national solidarity, let’s place our confidence in the competency of our security authorities in their search for a way out of this quagmire. There will be a solution, I’m sure, sooner or later.
As of the time of writing, no major breakthrough has been reported in the negotiations between our security personnel and the illegal immigrants to persuade the latter to go back to where they rightly belong. In addition to the effort of the security forces on the ground, I should imagine there are diplomatic communications between the two neighbouring countries.
Opportunity for our diplomats to hone skills
Coming as it did during the electioneering season, the incident at Lahad Datu offers an excellent opportunity for our Foreign Minister who happens to be from Sabah and his deputy from Sarawak to test their diplomatic skills. Unfortunately, the incident happened at a time when they should be concentrating on defending their seats in parliament. No matter – our Wisma Putra staff can deal with their counterparts in the Philippines.
While we are not in a position to know in detail what’s happening on the diplomatic front, we would like, however, to hear from our Foreign Minister or his deputy some assurance that we are on solid ground in respect of the Philippines claim to Sabah. Why the silence? Prevention is better than cure The lesson we ought to learn from this episode at Tanduo is that we must be vigilant at all times in all places along the common borders.
Where we’ve slipped up in the security watch at Lahad Datu we must make amends – plug the hole in the fence; ask the neighbour for help.
Rest assured that the people of Malaysia as a whole will rally for the authorities in their efforts to find a peaceful solution to the impasse but we ask of the government to be transparent in its dealings with the intruders if they agree to go back to where they belong: disclose to us the promise and agreement of the illegal intruders never to enter out territory again without permission. Developing story We are watching how events develop in the days and weeks to come with the hope that all will end well for both parties.
Hopefully by the time this piece is printed, the intruders will have seen the futility of their claim to a piece of Malaysian real estate and leave our shores peacefully.
It is good that the Home Affairs Minister, the police and the army have assured us not to worry about the presence of these foreigners on our soil because they cannot, it is assumed, do any real harm. We would like to take their word for it. It would be better if we are assured that from now on the territorial rights of our country will not be violated again by any foreigners, armed or unarmed. If that happens, show them that we have the necessary teeth.
This is our only country. Let’s take good care of her. The responsibility of being vigilant at all times rests not only with the security apparatus but also with the ordinary citizens.
To our fellow countrymen in Sabah, rest assured of the full support of other Malaysians everywhere in your hour of anxiety.
I shall now desist from further comment until the next development – a happy ending to the stand off.
Meanwhile enjoy your Chap Goh Meh celebrations.
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