KOTA KINABALU, July 4 — Despite the costly lesson and "disaster” of Sulu claim, former foreign minister Tan Sri Anifah Aman said Malaysians should not be dissuaded from engaging in international arbitration as for dispute resolution.

Instead, he said the case could be used to provide lessons for those engaged in cross-border trade and business.

"International arbitration has many advantages. Neutrality, efficiency, ease of enforceability and confidentiality have made it a preferred forum under the backdrop of globalisation.

"But foremost, it is founded on the principle of freedom of contract and a desire to compromise,” he said during his closing address at the Sabah edition of the international arbitration colloquium here today.

The former Kimanis MP also said international arbitration processes should have the right balance between transparency, legitimacy and legality on the one part and flexibility on the other in order to flourish.

The senator said that the process starts when both parties agree to submit to it, which was not the case with the Sulu "heirs” who launched theirs unilaterally.

"The case of the Sulu heirs’ attempts to appoint their own arbitrator where no agreement to arbitrate exists is one clear example. It is not possible for one party to thrust international arbitration as a platform for dispute resolution on a non-consenting party simply to achieve their own desired outcomes.

"So, actually, I would hesitate to classify the Sulu case as an international arbitration, simply because Malaysia did not even agree to participate in the arbitral process,” he said.

He said that the global media attention on the case has at least served to highlight the challenges faced by the global arbitration system and potential abuses arising from gaps within that system.

"The Sulu case not only exemplifies the vagaries involved in an international arbitration, but also pushes to the fore in a real situation the many challenges to be grappled with, towards ensuring fair justice to all parties involved in international arbitration processes,” said Anifah.

Later during a press conference, Anifah said that the government should consider taking legal action against those behind the claim, including the so-called heirs, the arbitrators, and others for abusing the process and causing great expense and anxiety to the nation.

"We should call these people and summon them so that they can feel what we’re going through. They are motivated by money,” he said, accusing the embattled Spanish arbitrator Gonzalo Stampa of greed by signing off on the unprecedented RM14 billion award.

Anifah said that the arbitration case went against internationally respected and inviolable principles and that it was only fair that the European courts of Spain, the Netherlands and France have seen fit to reassert the inviolability of this principle in favour of Malaysia.

"But it was shocking to hear how the international arbitration process was misused to threaten our national sovereignty,” he said.

Anifah also cautioned the country on its dealings with matters of international and national interest, which may cause some to take advantage of an opportunity when there is a lot at stake.

He said Malaysia and Philippines enjoyed good relations despite the latter’s claims on Sabah, which was used as a political ploy to drum up support.

"My stance during my time as the foreign minister was not to recognise any claims on Sabah at all even though we had excellent bilateral relations with the Philippines. And because we did not even entertain these baseless claims at that time, there was no question about the so-called Sulu heirs daring to initiate an arbitration,” he said.

"Although one hand alone cannot clap, even the slightest misstep would allow for opportunists to seize the chance to force the government to engage in their frivolous games to defend national sovereignty and integrity,” he said.