In a statement today, the Sulu special secretariat war room said that in the unanimous decision, delivered on Oct 8, the court affirmed the six-month prison sentence and one-year prohibition from acting as an arbitrator imposed by the Madrid Criminal Court on Dec 22, 2023.

The ruling is final and marks the conclusion of all criminal proceedings relating to the Sulu case in Spain.

According to the statement, the decision was received by Putrajaya today.

“This final judgment reaffirms that adherence to lawful orders remains the cornerstone of both justice and the integrity of dispute resolution,” it said.

Law and institutional reform minister Azalina Othman Said said Malaysia welcomed the landmark ruling from Spain’s highest court as definitive affirmation of the rule of law.

“It demonstrates beyond doubt that the purported Sulu arbitration was the product of the unlawful and criminal conduct of a rogue arbitrator and vindicates the government of Malaysia’s consistent position that the so-called award obtained by the Sulu claimants is null and void,” she said in the statement.

Malaysia’s position on the Sulu case has now been confirmed by the courts of Spain, France and the Netherlands.

Eight citizens of the Philippines claiming to be heirs of the defunct Sulu sultanate had filed for arbitration proceedings in Spain, seeking billions of dollars from Malaysia over Sabah.

In March 2019, a court in Madrid appointed Stampa as the arbitrator for their claims.

Malaysia secured a decisive victory in the long-running dispute as a result of favourable rulings by a Luxembourg court, the Hague Court of Appeal in the Netherlands, the Paris Court of Appeal in France, as well as the Spanish courts.