Jamalul Kiram wants to 'talk' to Malaysia

First he wants a unilateral ceasefire to avoid further bloodshed in the standoff in East Sabah. Now the self-proclaimed Sulu Sultan Jamalul Kiram III wants to hold ‘talks’ with Malaysia on how to resolve the crisis.

However, there is a condition attached to the 74-year-old’s desire for negotiations.

Yahoo! Southeast Asia reported that the condition is that the peace talks must not be held in Malaysia.

“If there is a chance (that) we can talk to them, if they are willing to talk to me, I said my door is always open.

“My door is open anytime but for me to go down to Malaysia? No. Perhaps somewhere in a neutral country near Malaysia. Maybe Singapore, Brunei, or Hong Kong,” he told the online portal.

Kiram claimed that Malaysia has been paying “customary payment of cession money” to the heirs of sultanate of Sulu as early as 1964.

Kiram also told the portal that his family’s collection of “annual rental receipts” from Malaysia for the years 1964, 1965, 1967, 1978, 1993, and 2002 among others proves that Malaysia acknowledges them as real heirs to Sulu Sultanate.

Kiram’s earlier call for ceasefire was rejected by the Malaysian government.