Jamalul Kiram III

Jamalul was born in Mainbung, Sulu. He was the eldest son of Datu Punjungan Kiram and Sharifa Usna Dalus Strattan. He is descended from the first Sultan of Sulu, Sharif ul-Hāshim of Sulu from the Banu Hashem tribe, the direct descendants of Muhammad.^[1] Kiram III also claimed to have a common ancestor with Brunei's current sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, although this was denied by Brunei.^[9]

Kiram III studied in Jolo Central Elementary School from 1946 to 1951. He finished high school at the Sulu High School in 1955 and took up pre-law from 1956 to 1958 at Notre Dame of Jolo. He studied for a Bachelor of Law degree from Manuel L. Quezon University (MLQU) in 1964 but was unable to finish it and pursued a career in dance instead.^[2] He was married to Dayang Hadja Fatima Celia H. Kiram, and resided in Taguig, Metro Manila.

In the 2007 elections, he unsuccessfully ran as Senator under the banner of TEAM Unity.^[10] After the family meeting, Kiram III once again became the self-proclaimed Sultan alongside Ismael Kiram II. He also declared Rajah Mudah Agbimuddin Kiram as "crown prince".^[5]

Beginning on February 9, 2013, approximately 200 men led by his brother, Agbimuddin Kiram intruded into neighbouring Sabah in Malaysia by entering illegally into Lahad Datu, in an effort to assert the former Sulu Sultanate's claim to the state. Kiram was reported to have directed them to intrude and not leave, claiming that "Malaysia is only renting Sabah" from the heirs of the Sultanate. The men, many of whom were heavily armed, engaged in a standoff with Malaysian police and armed forces which saw the death of 56 of his followers while the rest were either captured or escaped.^[2][11][12] The intrusion into neighbouring territory was believed to have been caused when the Philippine government treated him and his wife only as "decorations" during the signing of a framework agreement with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).^[2] President Benigno Aquino III blamed Kiram and his followers for dragging the Philippines into the dispute, with a bad impact on overseas Filipinos in Malaysia and hurting relations between the two.^[2][13][14] His act drew criticism from most Filipinos in Sabah as many of them have become a victim of discrimination and retaliation from the local Borneo tribes due to the killing of Malaysian police who mainly comprising the indigenous Borneo races,^[15] as well from other claimants who decried his actions and want to retake the eastern part of Sabah through peaceful means without any bloodshed.^{[16][17][18][19]}

The Lahad Datu incursion has had lasting consequences for the people of Sabah.^[20] Prior to this incursion, the government of Malaysia continued to dutifully pay an annual cession payment amounting to roughly $1,000 to the indirect heirs of the Sultan honoring an 1878 agreement, where North Borneo – today's Sabah – was conceded by the late Sultan of Sulu to a British company.^[21][22] However, Malaysia suspended these payments in response to this attack that killed civilians and members of the Malaysian armed forces.^[23]

In 2018, years after the Lahad Datu incident, a group of eight heirs of the Sultan of Sulu initiated a legal case against the Malaysian government seeking compensation for halted payments.^[24] The claimants are backed in the lawsuit by a UK global litigation and arbitration finance firm, Therium, who will take the lion's share of proceeds in case of a win.^[25][26]

According to the Litigation Finance Journal, this legal dispute between the Malaysian government and the Sulu heirs has been “one of the most high profile international arbitration cases in recent times, raising issues around state sovereignty, and the role of third-party funders in international arbitration”.^[27] Another expert analysis called this a “highly controversial ad hoc arbitration, in which neither the alleged arbitration clause nor the development of the procedure were accepted by the parties or by the courts of the headquarters, Spain”.^[28]

In February 2022, Gonzalo Stampa - the arbitrator for the case - awarded US$14.9 billion to the Sultan of Sulu's heirs, who have since sought to enforce the award against Malaysian state-owned assets around the world. It is noteworthy that the High Court of Madrid had annulled the procedure presided over by Stampa, who then moved the case to Paris, where he announced a verdict against Malaysia.^[29] In a crucial recent development, Stampa has been convicted of contempt of court for “knowingly disobeying rulings and orders from the Madrid High Court of Justice”, and sentenced to six months in prison.^[30]

According to Law360, the Spanish courts’ decision to move ahead with criminal proceedings against Stampa is a significant “victory for the Malaysian government”.^[31] This follows two other wins the country secured in the case in June 2023, with a Dutch appeals court refusing to enforce the award on account of Stampa's annulled appointment by a Spanish court, and a French appeals court similarly blocking the enforcement of the award due to Stampa's lack of authority on the case.^[31]

On October 20, 2013, Kiram III died at the age of 75 due to multiple organ failure.^[2] He made a dying request to be buried at the capital of the Sultanate in Maimbung, Sulu. He left eight children by two wives.^[32] Numerous political personalities paid their respects to the late Sultan including Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao Governor Mujiv Hataman and Sulu Vice-governor Abdusakur Mahail Tan,^[33] Former First Lady of the Philippines Imelda Marcos,^[34] and the Malacañang Palace.^[35]

His spokesman said that their "royal family" would continue to pursue their main intention over the former dispute between Philippines and Malaysia.^[36] The Malaysian branch of police in Sabah has stated that they "would continue to be alert for any intrusion".^[37]

Kiram III's daughter, Princess Jacel Kiram, is the designated spokeswoman of the late sultan and the most known of all the members of the Sulu royal family. The princess is currently living in a subdivision established by the Philippine government in Taguig in 1974, along with other members of Kiram III's family. Her father's royal bloodline established her royal ties with the Muslim royals of Sulu, Basilan, Tawi-tawi, Maguindanao, and Lanao del Sur. Her grandmother from the maternal side came from Pangasinan in the Ilocos Region, while her grandfather came from Sorsogon in the Bicol Region. Her name is literally an amalgamation of the Muslim name, Jamulul (from her father), and the Christian name, Celia (from her mother). In 2002, she finished her bachelor of arts with a degree in Inter-Disciplinary Studies at De La Salle–College of Saint Benilde. During that time, her thesis, “The Sulu Sultanate’s Genealogy and its Relation to the Philippines’ Claim to Sabah” was declared as Best Thesis. In 2013, she married Moh Yusop Hasan, a Filipino army major. In 2017, she headed the Philippine delegation on the 19th World Festival of Youth and Students in the World Federation of Democratic Youth held in Sochi, Russia. She was also a delegate of the Philippines to China in celebration of the 600th Year of Sulu-China Friendship, coinciding with the book launching of Friendship Without Borders, in Guangxi. Jacel also participated in a United Nations-sponsored conference on Drug Control Program held at the United Nations Office in Vienna, Austria. She was also the chairman of People's Coalition for Peace.^[38]