Can Malaysia’s Mahathir outwit ‘common enemy’ Anwar over Pedra Branca row?

A recommendation for a probe into Mahathir Mohamad over the island saga has triggered the ex-leader into forming an anti-Anwar coalition

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The Horsburgh Lighthouse on Pedra Branca island, which marks the eastern entrance to the Straits of Singapore between Singapore and Malaysia. Photo: Shutterstock

Published: 12:00pm, 26 Dec 2024Updated: 2:10pm, 26 Dec 2024

Malaysia’s government may be setting itself up for a fresh round of political upheaval, experts say, as it considers whether to initiate a criminal probe against former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad for dropping a challenge against the award of a contested island to Singapore over a decade ago.

On December 5, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s administration declassified a report by a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) on Pedra Branca, locally known as Pulau Batu Puteh, which recommended that Mahathir be investigated for allegedly cheating the government into withdrawing a challenge against the International Court of Justice’s (ICJ) decision in 2008 to award the rocky outcrop to Singapore.

The revelation has triggered a fiery reaction from 99-year-old Mahathir.

A week later, the two-time prime minister announced a coalition with the Malay nationalist Perikatan Nasional opposition front to fight back against Anwar’s administration, which he described as the “common enemy” of the country’s Malay-Muslim majority.

“At the moment, Anwar is public enemy No. 1 for [Mahathir] and the opposition,” said Syaza Farhana Mohamad Shukri, head of the political science department at the International Islamic University of Malaysia (IIUM).

“If [the government] goes ahead with the investigations, the opposition will have a field day to paint this very negative picture of Anwar.”

The ICJ’s award was important for Malaysia’s geographically smaller neighbour as it resulted in Singapore’s exclusive economic zone extending by up to 12 nautical miles outwards from Pedra Branca, which is located 24 nautical miles east of the city state.