evidence: The factual background of the case dates back to the colonial times of Borneo. In 1878, the Sultan of Sulu, who was then the sovereign over certain territories that are now part of Malaysia, issued a document granting the coastal territory in Sabah, along with certain islands, to Messrs. Alfred Dent and Baron de Overbeck, for perpetual lease, including the right to "profit from its minerals, forest products and animals". In exchange, they promised to pay an annual rent of 5000, and then 5300 pesos, to the Sultan. The two gentlemen subsequently formed the British North Borneo Company, a company chartered in the Victorian Great Britain, which took over the management of the leased territory. In 1903 the Sultan of Sulu and the British North Borneo Company reconfirmed the 1878 agreement by way of a deed.