ZAMBOANGA CITY鈥擳he sultanate of Sulu considers closed聽 the issue about Lahad Datu, where armed men loyal to the sultan tried to occupy a village in Sabah.
Sultan Esmail Kiram II said he wished not to speak further about what happened in Lahad Datu.
鈥淚t is finished, closed,鈥� he told reporters here on Saturday. Esmail succeeded his brother, Sultan Jamalul Kiram III, who died last month.
Esmail said his brother鈥檚 wish to continue the claim over Sabah would have to go through a different approach.
鈥淭here will be more dialogues and only those involved will be in these dialogues,鈥� Esmail聽 said.
This time, Esmail聽 said, only the sultanate of Sulu and representatives of the Malaysian government would be involved in the talks.
Esmail聽 was a guest in the turnover of command rites at聽 Western Mindanao Command, where Lt. Gen. Rey Ardo was replaced by Lt. Gen. Rustico Guerrero.
Ardo said that with the new sultan, the Sabah claim聽 鈥渨ill have a new direction.鈥�
Guerrero said the presence of Esmail聽 could be a sign that the Royal Forces of the Sultanate of Sulu might no longer opt for a violent claim over Sabah.聽 鈥淭he聽 Sabah claim can be better resolved through dialogue,鈥� Guerrero said. Julie S. Alipala, Inquirer Mindanao