FAR EAST CORRESPONDENT — As the death toll from the Sabah insurgency mounts, authorities in Manila have decided to hold talks with the Kirams, whose delusions of grandeur and old clan ties to the East Malaysian state have resulted in a deadly stand-off with the Malaysian military.

But more importantly, this begs the question: Why has Jamalul Kiram III, the self-proclaimed Sultan of Sulu, not been charged with murder, probable kidnapping, taking-up arms in a foreign land and inciting an insurgency?

Read more from Luke Hunt in The Diplomat.