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The Jakarta PostGosong Niger: Another Ambalat? I Made Andi Arsana and Clive Schofield, New South Wales, AustraliaIt seems that conflicting claims concerning international boundaries between Indonesia and Malaysia will continue unabated. One very prominent case emerged last year over the Ambalat offshore area and it led to serious tension. While negotiations on Ambalat are still underway, another issue regarding the status of something called Gosong Niger has come to the fore.
The first critical questions to raise are: where and what is Gosong Niger? It is located approximately 5.5 nautical miles off the terminus of the Indonesian (Kalimantan) and Malaysian (Sarawak) land boundary at Tanjung Datu on the South China Sea coast of the island of Borneo. Gosong Niger is, in fact, a submerged ridge of alluvial sand in shallow water, and indeed the term "Gosong" equates to the English word "sandbar".
It is, therefore, neither an island nor even a low-tide-elevation, but instead a permanently submerged area of approximately 50 square kilometers stretching from west to east (Tempo, February 2006). Thus, Gosong Niger, cannot generate maritime claims itself, instead falling within the territorial sea claims of Indonesia and Malaysia, which both extend out to 12 nautical miles from the coast.
The next question: Is there already a boundary line in place? The answer to this question is both yes and no. In 1969, Indonesia and Malaysia did conclude a maritime boundary agreement, including a segment extending north from Tanjung Datu. This boundary line divides Gosong Niger with approximately two-thirds of the sandbar lying on the Indonesian side of the line. Ownership over Gosong Niger therefore seems clear as there is a precise boundary line dividing it.
However, the 1969 agreement only divided the continental shelves of the two countries and there has been no agreement concerning delimitation of Indonesia and Malaysia's respective territorial sea claims within which Gosong Niger surely falls. It is important to note here that the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, to which both countries are parties, clearly states that the continental shelf is a zone which extends beyond a coastal state's territorial sea. Furthermore, the 1969 boundary treaty between Indonesia and Malaysia provides that the agreement "shall not in any way affect future agreements, which may be entered into between the two governments relating to the delimitation of the territorial sea boundaries" between them.
It therefore seems that regardless of the 1969 boundary line extending from Tanjung Datu, there is still some uncertainty as to the location of the boundary between Indonesia and Malaysia immediately offshore, including in the vicinity of Gosong Niger. Additionally, there is further uncertainty regarding the water column as no exclusive economic boundary (EEZ) has been agreed upon. A further complication is the fact that the UN Convention favors equidistance as the boundary for the territorial sea unless "historic title or other special circumstances" dictate otherwise. The 1969 continental shelf boundary in this area is, however, known to be a negotiated line of equidistance in Malaysia's favor.
The dispute first flared when a fishing boat belonging to the West Kalimantan Office of Marine Affairs and Fisheries was conducting a survey in the vicinity of Gosong Niger, approximately 0.7 nautical miles in to the Malaysian side of the 1969 seabed boundary line. The Royal Malaysian Navy suspected that the Indonesian vessel was guilty of trespassing. However, as there has been no agreement dividing the water column and the territorial sea boundary remains undelimited, it is difficult see what infringement the Indonesian vessel was guilty of (especially if it was not interacting with the seabed).
Subsequent reports have indicated that Malaysian Navy has been conducting patrols around Gosong Niger and has denied access to the area to Indonesia's traditional fishermen who appear generally unaware that the area is at least partially claimed by Indonesia, not least because they can see a Malaysian ship moored near Gosong Niger almost every day. Additional media reports have claimed that Malaysia also uses the area for aqua-tourism activities. The precise location and nature of these operations, for instance, whether they include interaction with the seabed, are unknown.
It therefore appears that Malaysia, or at least the Royal Malaysian Navy, regards the 1969 boundary line as the boundary for all maritime zones, including the water column and perhaps for the territorial sea as well.
Some commentators in Indonesia have likened the Gosong Niger issue to the Sipadan and Ligitan case as well as the Ambalat dispute between the two countries, raising concerns that Malaysia will eventually secure sovereignty over Gosong Niger because it has demonstrated more effective occupation and administration over the sandbar. Unlike in the Celebes Sea, however, there is no dispute over territory in the vicinity of Gosong Niger and a seabed boundary agreement is in place. Nonetheless, there is a danger that accepting the course of the seabed boundary as the limit for enforcement of all maritime zones, will eventually equate to a de facto boundary, making it very hard for either side to assert a claim beyond that line. Fundamentally, this is of more concern to Indonesia than Malaysia as the seabed boundary lies well to the west of the equidistance line to Malaysia's advantage. Indeed, analysis shows that the "extra" area that Indonesia could potentially claim beyond the current seabed boundary up to the median/equidistance line amounts to approximately 24,000 sq. km.
It seems that international boundary disputes continue to plague Indonesia and capture public attention. Gosong Niger is merely the latest episode. It seems likely that similar issues will arise in the future. Thus, while it is understandable that the government is focused on pressing issues such as the economy, corruption and mitigating natural disasters, nevertheless, continued vigilance is required in order to safeguard national sovereignty/sovereign rights and international boundaries.
I Made Andi Arsana is a lecturer at the Department of Geodetic Engineering, Gadjah Mada University, who currently is a research student at the University of New South Wales, Australia. Clive Schofield is a senior lecturer in the Centre for Maritime Policy, University of Wollongong, New South Wales.