KUCHING: Sarawak has full control over its continental shelf and the oil and gas resources found there, says State Legal Counsel Datuk Seri JC Fong.
He explained that Sarawak’s rights were recognised long before Malaysia was formed, when its boundaries were extended in 1954 to include the seabed and subsoil off its coast.
He added sovereignty over Sarawak’s land and resources was transferred from the British Crown to the Sarawak government under the Malaysia Agreement 1963.
“Malaysia can claim continental rights at the national level, but within the country, states retain authority over shelves in their own boundaries.
“On Malaysia Day, the description of land in the Land Code was changed from Crown land to state land, not Crown land to federal land.
“We must not at any time give up our rights or claims to Sarawak’s continental shelf. This is a very important area,” he said during a talk titled 62 Years after MA63: The Emergence of a Progressive and Prosperous Sarawak at the Future Economy of Sarawak forum at Swinburne University of Technology Sarawak, here today (Sept 27).
Fong said the continental shelf is vital as it holds Sarawak’s oil and gas reserves, which the state had already been regulating before joining Malaysia.
However, after Malaysia was formed, the Parliament passed the Petroleum Mining Act 1966 and the Continental Shelf Act 1966 to take over control of offshore resources. Sarawak objected to these laws, but they were later applied to the state during the 1969 emergency.
The ordinance remained in force until it lapsed in June 2012 under Article 150 of the Federal Constitution, rendering both Acts no longer applicable to Sarawak.
“Sovereignty over land and resources was never transferred to the Federation or the federal government. The British made this very clear.
“That was why Sarawak formed its own government in July 1963 before voting to join Malaysia under the agreed terms,” he added.
He noted that Sarawak recently defended its rights again when Putrajaya proposed a new Carbon Capture and Utilisation Act. The state argued that the continental shelf is state land, and the federal government agreed the Act would not apply to Sarawak.
“The continental shelf has always been part of Sarawak since 1954. Its resources, like oil and gas, belong to the state.
“Sarawak wants to remain within Malaysia, and this is enshrined in our state anthem. We want to be prosperous and contribute positively to the nation’s prosperity, progress and unity.
“The federal government and the people of the peninsula should support Sarawak’s efforts towards becoming a progressive and prosperous state,” he asserted.
