Is Malaysia a Friend or Foe?

I used to know Malaysia as a caring neighbor and a friend of the Philippines. But not anymore. I tend to believe that Malaysia today is becoming a symbol of an autocratic regime and an uncaring society.

A case in point is the on-going territorial conflict between the Philippines and Malaysia specifically with regards to Sabah, a territory owned by the Philippines through the Sultan of Sulo. To many Filipinos, ownership of Sabah by the Sultan of Sulo is absolute even with Malaysia's claim that they have legal rights over the place. The fact that Malaysia is paying rent to the Philippines through the Sultan of Sulo, is already an acknowledgement that Sabah is indeed owned by the Philippines.Why would the government of Malaysia pay rent for the land they owned?

The ownership claim by both countries remained unresolved up to now. It would have been aceptable to the Filipinos if the claims remained unresolved and to let due process work in resolving the issues.

What the Filipinos object to or resent in this long drawn conflict, is the reported inhuman treatment by the Malaysians of the Filipinos living in Sabah. Thousand of Filipinos, many of them were born in Sabah, have been deported to the Philippines on a flimsy ground of being undocumented aliens. Some Filipinos especially women living in Sabah are reported to have been subjected to human indignities including forced labor, prostitution, rape and countless human rights violations. Many of them were reportedly abused and forcibly jailed without due process. Most of these "deportees" have not set foot on Philippine soil and many do not even speak the Filipino language.

The least that Malaysia could do to show its adherence to the doctrine of human rights is to maintain status quo while the territorial claims remains unresolved. It will not cost Malaysia a fortune if they let these hapless Filipinos stay and live their life until the issue of final ownership is resolved by the courts or by the United Nations.

The present leaders of Malaysia seems to favor undemocratic ways of dealing with this long drawn conflict and I see no change until a new set of elected leaders are installed. Maybe the likes of Anwar Ibrahim who values democracy and human rights, could put an end to this territorial conflict.

What is in store for these helpless Filipinos in Sabah? We can only speculate.