Royal commission urges criminal probe on Malaysia’s Mahathir over island lost to Singapore

A commission claims Mahathir misled the government about a disputed island awarded to Singapore, risking up to seven years in prison if convicted

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Malaysia’s former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad speaks during the Nikkei Forum “Future of Asia” in Tokyo on May 24. Photo: AFP

Published: 6:06pm, 5 Dec 2024Updated: 6:20pm, 5 Dec 2024

A Royal Commission has recommended a criminal probe into former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad for allegedly misleading the government into dropping a challenge to the award of a contested island to neighbouring Singapore over a decade ago.

Mahathir had in 2018 instructed the attorney general’s chambers to halt efforts to challenge the International Court of Justice’s (ICJ) decision to award Pedra Branca – or Pulau Batu Puteh as it is known in Malaysia – to Singapore, according to findings by a Royal Commission of Inquiry.

The recommendation to investigate the 99-year-old Mahathir is the latest legal action directed at him.

Singapore’s Deputy Prime Minister Shanmugam Jayakumar (right), Chief Justice Chan Sek Keong (centre) and ambassador-at-large and law professor at the National University of Singapore Tommy Koh (left) are pictured at the UN’s International Court of Justice in The Hague in November 2007. Photo: AFP

Mahathir is also at the centre of a high-profile corruption crackdown that he and his associates say is an act of revenge by his former protégé turned arch-rival, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.

The attorney general’s office immediately halted proceedings after receiving an official letter from Mahathir, stating that he believed the case “does not need to be continued”, the commission said in a 238-page report released to parliament on Thursday.

The commission recommended that Mahathir be investigated for intentionally deceiving the government, a crime that, if convicted, can result in up to seven years in jail, a fine, or both.

“It is proposed that a police report be lodged by the commission secretary to allow investigations to be initiated,” the commission said in the recommendations section of its report.