Sabah Most Wanted

Can A Private Entity Exclusively Manage an Island?

Although the Pulau Manis case is nowhere near as serious as Sipadan and Ligitan, Indonesia must never again be complacent in a matter of sovereignty, especially for its outermost islands. Illustration. (Photo source: Pixabay/sharonang)
In-depth Jakarta, GIVnews.com – In October 2015, Singapore’s media Channel NewsAsia made ripples among Indonesians by publishing a piece of news titled “Indonesian eco-resort to be accessible only from Singapore”.
“What is billed as the world’s largest eco-park resort being built in Indonesian waters will be only accessible via ferry service from Singapore, developers of Funtasy Island said on Tuesday (Oct 20),” wrote the article.
The piece, concerning a cluster of small islands near Batam currently being developed as a resort, was written based on a news conference by Funtasy Island Development (FID), the company responsible for the construction.
The quote rankled some people who found it an insult to Indonesian sovereignty that the Indonesian islands can only be accessed from Singapore.
To make matters worse, recently FID’s website published an image in which Funtasy Island, the fancy name for Pulau Manis, is colored turquoise, the same as the rest of Singapore while Malaysia and Indonesia were colored white. This image implied that Pulau Manis was a part of Singapore territory. Later, that image was taken down and replaced by a new one where Funtasy Island was colored red.
After the original image went viral and was reported in The Jakarta Post, Indonesian authorities submitted a formal complaint against FID. “We already asked for an explanation from the Singaporean management. We gave them a warning not to make any sudden moves that would attract any negative perceptions,” said Guntur Sakti, head of Riau Islands’ provincial tourism agency head as reported by Singapore’s local newspaper The Straits Times.
FID merely responded that the map was only for the purpose of marketing and did not mean to imply anything else. Meanwhile, a spokesman from Singapore’s Foreign Ministry declared that “Singapore has never disputed Indonesia’s sovereignty over Pulau Manis and does not lay claim to the island.”
Other than the complaint, another response to the map picture came from the Indonesian National Army (TNI). Personnel from Kodim 0316/Batam went to Funtasy Island and planted several Red-and-White flags as a symbol of Indonesian sovereignty. Andreas Nanang, leader of Kodim 0316/Batam also stressed that there is no restriction for Indonesians who wish to enter Pulau Manis. Indonesian citizens willing to go to the islands do not need a passport and don’t have to go through Singapore.
The edited map. (Source: funtasyisland.com)
Maritime border Indonesia has an extremely long maritime border with its neighbors. With the current capabilities, it is almost impossible for the armed forces to patrol all sectors at the same time.
Thus, it is crucial that the country upgrades its defensive capabilities with more aircrafts, warships, and submarines. Alternatively, drones or other unmanned aerial vehicles and real-time satellite imaging may be used as well. This can also help prevent illegal and unregulated fishing, a major focus of President Widodo’s government.
Funtasy Island is an eco-resort currently being built on Pulau Manis, a series of six small islands north of Batam Island. The cluster of islands has a land area of 200 hectares and a sea area of 430 hectares. Of the land area, 30% will be used to construct 400 villas, 2 hotels, and other recreational venues. The total investment was approximated at IDR 3 billion and all of the units have either been sold or leased out, mostly to people in Singapore.
The resort is developed by PT. Batam Island Marina who cooperated with FID and Seven Seas Funtasy Venture. The latter two companies are responsible to manage sales of the resort in Singapore. Disney Island is also involved to manage Funtasy Islands, which later will be equipped with a luxury hotel and various marine activities including snorkeling, diving, sailing, mangrove safari, and others. For day-to-day operations, Funtasy Island approximates that it will employ around 1,500 staffs.
Can private entity manage an island? Management of an island, technically a plot of land, by a private entity is not against the law. Moreover, in this case Funtasy Island is developed by a company registered in Indonesia, PT. Batam Island Marina.
Nonetheless, the development process must be in line with all regional rules and regulations, such as protection for the wildlife and environment, due compensation for the local inhabitants (if any), fulfillment of tax obligation, procurement of construction licenses, and so on.
Regardless, this map issue brought to memory the cases of Sipadan and Ligitan islands. Sipadan and Ligitan fell to Malaysia in 2002 after a dispute over sovereignty broke out in 1969 between Indonesia and Malaysia.
The case was eventually decided in the International Court of Justice by seventeen judges, where Indonesia lost 16 to 1. Although the Pulau Manis case is nowhere near as serious as Sipadan and Ligitan, Indonesia must never again be complacent in a matter of sovereignty, especially for its outermost islands.