Luconia Shoals

The Luconia Shoals, divided into the North and South Luconia Shoals, and sometimes known as the Luconia Reefs, are one of the largest and least-known reef complexes in the South China Sea.[1] Some geographers classify the shoals as the southernmost part of the Spratly Islands.[2]

Luconia Shoals
Disputed island
Other names:
Gugusan Beting Raja Jarum (Malay)
Gugusan Beting Patinggi Ali (Malay)
北康暗沙 Běikāng ànshā (Chinese)
南康暗沙 Nánkāng ànshā (Chinese)
Geography
LocationSouth China Sea
Coordinates05°36′N 112°36′E
Administered by
Malaysia
StateSarawak, Division and District of Mukah, Subdistrict of Balingian
Claimed by
Republic of China (Taiwan)
People's Republic of China
Landsat 7-derived sketch map of North and South Luconia Shoals
Extract from US Dept of State map also showing Louisa Reef and James Shoal

Location

The shoals lie around 100 kilometres (62 mi) off the Sarawak coast of Borneo, inside the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of Malaysia, and around 2,000 kilometres (1,200 mi) from Mainland China. The shoals are either part of the Spratly Islands,[2] or southeast of what some sources consider to be the southernmost members of the Spratly Islands, such as Louisa Reef.[3] Extending over an area of several thousand square kilometres, both the north and south groups of the shoals are permanently submerged at depths of 5 to 40 metres (16 to 131 ft) below sea level, with the exception of Luconia Breakers. There are extensive oil and natural gas resources under the seabed in this area,[1] which is also home to various fish including manta rays, wrasse, and grouper.[4] The shoals are also where the British barque Viscount Melbourne was wrecked on 5 January 1842.[5]

The Chinese name for the shoals 'Kang' is the shortened form of 'Lo-kang-nia' - a transliteration of the English language name, Luconia. The Republic of China's Maps Inspection Committee published this name in 1935.[6]

The English language name, Luconia, is from an old name of the island of Luzon in the Philippines, depicted in old Latin, Italian, and Portuguese maps as "Luçonia" or "Luconia."[7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14]

Features
FeatureChinese
(Trad./Simp.)		MalaysianCoordinatesDepth
metres
North Luconia ShoalsBěikāng ànshā (北康暗沙)Gugusan Beting Raja Jarum
Friendship ShoalMéngyì ànshā (盟誼暗沙/盟谊暗沙)Beting Rentap 5°57′N 112°32′E8.2
Hardie Reef1Hǎikāng ànshā (海康暗沙)Terumbu Asun 5°56′N 112°31′E5.1
Aitken Reef1Yìjìng Jiāo (義淨礁/义净礁)Terumbu Datak Landih 5°54′N 112°33′E9.4
Buck Reef1 Fǎxiǎn ànshā (法顯暗沙/法显暗沙) Terumbu Linggir 5°45′N 112°33′E4.9
Moody Reef Kāngxī ànshā (康西暗沙) Terumbu Permaisuri 5°38′N 112°22′E7.3
Seahorse Breakers Nán'ān Jiāo (南安礁) Hempasan Dang Ajar 5°32′N 112°35′E2
Tripp Reef Běi'ān Jiāo (北安礁) Terumbu Litong 5°39′N 112°32′E3.7
Hayes Reef Nánpíng Jiāo (南屏礁) Terumbu Lang Ngindang 5°22′N 112°38′E<0
South Luconia Shoals Nánkāng ànshā (南康暗沙) Gugusan Beting Patinggi Ali
Stigant Reef Hǎi'ān Jiāo (海安礁) Terumbu Sahap 5°02′N 112°30′E4.6
Connell Reef Yǐnbō ànshā (隱波暗沙/隐波暗沙) Terumbu Dato Talip 5°06′N 112°34′E1.8
Herald Reef Hǎiníng Jiāo (海寧礁/海宁礁) Terumbu Saji 4°57′N 112°37′E2
Comus Shoal Huānlè ànshā (歡樂暗沙/欢乐暗沙) Beting Merpati 5°01′N 112°56′E8.2
Richmond Reef Tánmén Jiāo (潭門礁/潭门礁) Terumbu Balingian 5°04′N 112°43′E3.6
Luconia Breakers Qióngtái Jiāo (瓊台礁/琼台礁) Hempasan Bentin 5°01′N 112°38′E>0
Sierra Blanca Chéngpíng Jiāo (澄平礁) ... 4°51′N 112°32′E<0

1) Hardie Reef, Aitken Reef and Buck Reef, from north to south, are part of an atoll which, as a whole, is named by the Chinese as: 盟谊南 or Méng yì nán, which translates as Friendship South.[2]

Satellite Images
  • Landsat 7 image of North Luconia Shoals
  • Landsat 7 image of South Luconia Shoals
    not showing Herald Reef 5 km southwest of Luconia Breakers

Territorial disputes

The Luconia shoals are administered by Malaysia, and are claimed by the Republic of China (Taiwan) and the People's Republic of China.

Malaysia

The shoals are administered by Malaysia,[15] and the Royal Malaysian Navy and Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency maintains a 24/7 presence in the area to monitor the shoals.[16] Malaysia's Fisheries Research Institute has conducted studies on the area since 2004.[17] Malaysia organises an annual International Deep Sea Fishing Tournament on the shoals with participants departing from the Marina May in Miri and heading up to the area for 3 days. The participant who catches the biggest fish is proclaimed the winner of the tournament[18][19]

On 31 August 2015, amateur marine archaeologist Captain Hans Berekoven with his wife and a team of marine researchers, as well as the Sarawak Museum curator, went to the shoals to plant a Malaysian flag.[15] Berekoven said the move was important to warn China to back down, and to urge the Malaysian government to take a serious look into the archaeological history of the area because the Sunda Shelf may have hosted a civilisation 12,000 years ago.[5]

China

In June 2015, Malaysian authorities detected a China Coast Guard vessel entering the area. It appears to be anchored at the shoals, about 150 kilometres north of Malaysian Borneo—well inside the 200 nautical miles (370 km; 230 mi) exclusive economic zone claimed by Malaysia. The Chinese vessel has been warned to leave the area and is monitored closely by the Royal Malaysian Navy. Malaysia lodged a protest over China's incursion into its waters,[20] as Chinese ships had been in Malaysian waters for more than two years. In a statement in 2015 by a Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Shahidan Kassim, he said "We have never received any official claims from them (China) and they said the island (Beting Patinggi Ali) belongs to them, but the country is 1,400 kilometres (870 mi) away. We are taking diplomatic action but in whatever approach, they have to get out of our national waters". The Malaysian government has since sent diplomatic notes every week to protest against the intrusion.[21] There have also been reports that crews aboard the Chinese vessel threatened to shoot local Malaysian fishermen who attempted to fish in the area.[22]

On 31 March 2016, Malaysia summoned the Chinese ambassador in Kuala Lumpur to protest the presence of around 100 Chinese fishing boats at Luconia Shoals. Until March, the Malaysian government rarely rebuked China in public to avoid disturbances to Sino-Malay relations as Beijing emerges as the Malaysian economy's main investor. Kuala Lumpur has "consistently played down China's activities in our territories", said Wan Saiful Wan Jan, chief executive of the Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs, a Malaysian think tank. "This could be to protect our commercial interest, or it could also be to avoid the public...realising how useless our defences are".[23]

See also

References
  1. "Luconia Shoals". oceandots.com. Archived from the original on 24 July 2012. Retrieved 14 May 2012.
  2. Hancox, David; Prescott, Victor (1995). A geographical description of the Spratly Islands and an account of hydrographic surveys amongst those islands (Maritime briefing ). University of Durham, International Boundaries Research Unit. ISBN 978-1897643181. p.2
  3. J. Ashley Roach (2014) Malaysia and Brunei: An Analysis of their Claims in the South China Sea, www.cna.org
  4. "Preliminary Study on the Coral Reef Resources at Luconia Shoals, Miri, Sarawak" (PDF). Malaysian Fisheries Research Institute. December 2004. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 May 2014. Retrieved 14 May 2012.
  5. Cindy Lai (8 September 2015). "Marine archaeologist stamps Malaysia's mark on Luconia Shoals". The Borneo Post. Retrieved 8 September 2015.
  6. Hayton, Bill (2019). "The Modern Origins of China's South China Sea Claims: Maps, Misunderstandings, and the Maritime Geobody". Modern China. 45 (2): 127–170. doi:10.1177/0097700418771678. S2CID 150132870.
  7. Van Linschoten, Jan Huygen (1596). "Exacta & Accurata Delineatio cum Orarum Maritimarum tum etjam locorum terrestrium quae in Regionibus China, Cauchinchina, Camboja sive Champa, Syao, Malacca, Arracan & Pegu". Barry Lawrence Ruderman Antique Maps Inc.
  8. Quad, Matthias; Bussemachaer, Johann (1598). "Asia Partiu Orbis Maxima MDXCVIII". Barry Lawrence Ruderman Antique Maps Inc.
  9. Hondius, Jodocus (1606). "India Orientalis". Barry Lawrence Ruderman Antique Maps Inc.
  10. Jansson, Jan (1630). "Indiae Orientalis Nova Descriptio". Barry Lawrence Ruderman Antique Maps Inc.
  11. Blaeu, Willem Janszoon (1642). "India quae Orientalis dicitur et Insulae Adiacentes". Barry Lawrence Ruderman Antique Maps Inc.
  12. Blaeu, Willem Janszoon (1635). "Asia Noviter Delineata". Barry Lawrence Ruderman Antique Maps Inc.
  13. Hondius, Henricus (1636). "India quae Orientalis dicitur et Insulae Adiacentes". Barry Lawrence Ruderman Antique Maps Inc.
  14. Mariette, Pierre (1650). "Carte Generale Des Indes Orientales et des Isles Adiacentes". Barry Lawrence Ruderman Antique Maps Inc.
  15. "Hans Berekoven and Malaysian colleagues with Malaysian flag on Luconia Shoals". abc.net.au. 8 August 2016. Retrieved 9 June 2015.
  16. Jenifer Laeng (3 June 2015). "China Coast Guard vessel found at Luconia Shoals". The Borneo Post. Retrieved 9 June 2015.
  17. "Luconia Shoals" (PDF). Malaysia Fisheries Research Institute. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-05-20. Retrieved 9 June 2015.
  18. "Miri Anglers Club". Miri Anglers Club. Archived from the original on 16 April 2015. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
  19. "Miri Deep Sea fishing contest wants 'early birds' for logistics". The Borneo Post. 23 February 2015. Archived from the original on 16 April 2015. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
  20. "Malaysia Toughens Stance With Beijing Over South China Sea". Retrieved 8 June 2015.
  21. "Malaysia lodges diplomatic protest against intrusion at Beting Patinggi Ali". Bernama. The Rakyat Post. 15 August 2015. Archived from the original on 29 September 2015. Retrieved 16 August 2015.
  22. "Presence of China Coast Guard ship at Luconia Shoals spooks local fishermen". The Borneo Post. 27 September 2015. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
  23. "Indonesia Blows Up 23 Foreign Fishing Boats to Send a Message". The Wall Street Journal. 5 April 2016. Retrieved 6 April 2016.
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