Justice of Brunei
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Judicial power is vested in the Supreme Court, composed of the Court of Appeal and the High Court, beneath which are the magistrates’ courts. Although the High Court is a court of first instance for more serious offenses, it also handles appeals from the magistrates’ courts. Appeals from the High Court are heard by the Court of Appeal. The final court of appeal for civil cases is the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council of London. There also are courts of Islamic law (Sharīʿah; Syariah in Malay), as interpreted through Shāfiʿī jurisprudence, that can appeal to the country’s Religious Council. When Syariah was first introduced, its jurisdiction was limited to personal or family matters (e.g., marriage). In 2014, however, Brunei began to phase in Syariah for criminal cases, with full implementation of the system on April 3, 2019.
Security
The small, well-equipped Royal Brunei Armed Forces consists mainly of an army group, with smaller navy and air force units. These forces are supplemented by the Ghurka Reserve Unit and the Royal Brunei Police. Only Malays are eligible to participate in the military, and service is voluntary. A separate battalion of British Army Gurkhas has been present in the country since 1971. Prior to the country’s independence, this unit was responsible for domestic security, but in the 21st century its chief task is to guard the petroleum and natural gas fields.
Health and welfare
Brunei is essentially a welfare state, with well-developed social facilities. Citizens receive basic medical and dental services at no charge. Primary care is provided by a network of government health centres and clinics scattered throughout the country. Remote rural areas are visited regularly by the government’s flying doctor service. There is a state hospital in each of the four districts, including a large facility in Bandar Seri Begawan. Private clinics and a few private hospitals also operate in the urban areas.
Incidence of serious infectious diseases (e.g., tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, and cholera) is low in Brunei. Aggressive malaria-control programs have rendered Brunei virtually malaria-free since the late 1980s. The country’s death rate is well below the world average, and life expectancy is in the mid-to-upper 70s.
Education
With education that is both free and compulsory from age 5 to 16, the vast majority of Brunei’s population is literate. Malay, English, and Chinese are the three official languages of instruction. Malay is used in government schools, although English is the medium for certain subjects, beginning at the upper primary level. In addition to the government schools are private Chinese schools and schools operated by religious institutions; all, however, generally follow the same government-developed curriculum. Following secondary school, students may further their studies at any of a number of technical or engineering colleges or vocational schools. Those with strong examination results may enroll for classes at the University of Brunei Darussalam (1985) or at the Islamic University of Sultan Sharif Ali (2007).
Cultural life
The arts
Visual and performing arts
The visual and performing arts have for centuries been a salient expression of Bruneian culture. Brunei is particularly renowned for its metalwork. Especially during the peak of the Brunei sultanate’s power (16th and 17th centuries), brass and silver artisans were highly valued for their craftsmanship. They produced gongs, cannons, and other articles that were often embossed with designs of serpents and other animals. Bruneian metalwork has long been an important item of trade, both within and beyond the boundaries of the sultanate. Indeed, many of the gongs that constitute ritual paraphernalia and heirloom property among the remote interior peoples—not only of Brunei but also of Malaysian and Indonesian Borneo—are of Bruneian origin.
Gongs are important locally as musical instruments. The royal nobat ensemble combines a set of vertically suspended gongs with double-reed instruments (called serunai) and single- and double-headed drums to mark important palace events, such as coronations, marriages, deaths, and the reception of honoured guests. The nobat also sometimes announces the times for Muslim prayer. A nonroyal ensemble called gulintangan combines a set of seven or eight small, horizontally suspended gongs with several larger, vertically suspended gongs and one or two double-headed drums to provide music for festivals in Malay and various other indigenous communities. An ensemble of small frame drums called hadrah often is played at weddings or to receive members of the royal family in an official capacity. A popular Malay social dance is performed to the accompaniment of large frame drums, called gendang, which often are played by women.
Architecture
The prevalence of Islamic arts in Brunei is particularly evident in the country’s magnificent architecture. The high golden dome of the Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque (1958) dominates the skyline of Bandar Seri Begawan. It features classic attributes of Muslim architecture in its ornate domes, arches, and minarets. The mosque was built and furnished with fine materials from around the world—including marble from Italy, granite from China, chandeliers and stained-glass windows from England, and carpets from Saudi Arabia. In the mid-1990s another spectacular structure, the Jame’ Asr Hassanal Bolkiah Mosque, was built in Kampong Kiarong (near Bandar Seri Begawan) to signify the eminence of Islam in Brunei; it is the largest mosque in the country. Istana Nurul Iman, set in landscaped gardens along the Brunei River, is an enormous residential palace incorporating both Islamic and distinctly Malay architectural styles. It is the home of the sultan and also houses his prime ministerial offices. The building is particularly striking when viewed at night from Persiaran Damuan, a nearby park featuring sculptures by noted Southeast Asian artists.
A different sort of architectural masterpiece is Kampong Ayer (“Water Village”), in Bandar Seri Begawan. Kampong Ayer is a collection of long-established villages, the structures of which hover on stilts above the Brunei River. Houses, medical clinics, and schools—most made of wood but some now made of cement—blend contemporary amenities with time-tested building styles. The dwellings and other facilities are interconnected by an extensive network of elevated walkways.
Sports and recreation
Brunei has fine facilities for a wide range of sports, including badminton, squash, tennis, field hockey, football (soccer), and aquatics, and the country’s strongest athletes are internationally competitive. Golf enthusiasts enjoy several championship courses, and polo has been popular for decades, particularly with members of the royal family; polo fields and the royal stables are located at Jerudong Park, near Bandar Seri Begawan. Ocean sports, such as yachting and windsurfing, also have a strong following.
In addition to such globally recognized activities, Bruneians practice a number of uniquely Southeast Asian sports—such as sepak takraw, a game similar to volleyball except the ball is made of rattan and is volleyed with the feet rather than the hands, and pencak silat, a type of martial art. These sports are internationally competitive within the Asian region, and Brunei has produced award-winning athletes in both events. In 1999 Brunei hosted the 20th Southeast Asian Games in Bandar Seri Begawan at the Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium, the country’s main sports venue. In 2000 the country sent its first representative to the Summer Olympic Games, held in Sydney, Australia.
Main kikik, or kite flying, remains a popular pastime in Brunei. Some kikik (kite) owners aim to fly their kites to extraordinary altitudes, to lead them through spectacular maneuvers, or to keep them airborne for as long as possible. Others, however, engage in kikik battles; with the strings of their kites coated with ground glass, competitors strive to sever in midair the strings of their opponents’ kikik.
Another local pastime is main gasing, or top spinning. Players typically throw their gasing (top) forcefully into an arena in an attempt either to keep their top spinning as long as possible or to knock their opponents’ tops down or out of the playing area. With gasing that can weigh some 15 pounds (7 kg), the game requires great strength, timing, and aim.
Pushpa Thambipillai Mohamad Yusop DamitHistory of Brunei
Although its early history is obscure, Brunei was known to be trading with and paying tribute to China in the 6th century ce. It then came under Hindu influence for a time through allegiance to the Majapahit empire, based in Java. When the ships of the expedition of Ferdinand Magellan anchored off Brunei in 1521, the fifth sultan, the great Bolkiah, controlled practically the whole of Borneo, the Sulu Archipelago, and neighbouring islands. Toward the end of the 16th century, however, the territory was torn by internal strife. Brunei’s power subsequently declined through the 19th century, notably with the cession of Sarawak in northwestern Borneo to the English adventurer James (later Sir James) Brooke in 1841, the expansion of Sarawak by additional grants to Brooke, the cession to Great Britain of the island of Labuan in Brunei Bay, and the final loss of what is now Sabah, East Malaysia, in northeastern Borneo.
Growing significance and journey toward independence
Brunei became a British protectorate in 1888, and in 1906 administration was vested in a British resident, whose advice the sultan was bound to accept. Despite the presence of a foreign administration, Brunei’s significance began to revive with the start of petroleum production in 1929. In 1941–45, during World War II, Brunei was occupied by the Japanese. The British returned after the war, and negotiations began for the eventual independence of Brunei.
The first step in this process occurred in 1959, when self-government was achieved and the British resident was replaced by a high commissioner. Britain remained responsible for defense and foreign policy. Brunei adopted a written constitution, and in 1962 a partly elected Legislative Council with limited authority was installed. The conversion to a representative government was interrupted later that year by a revolt, which was suppressed with the help of British forces; the sultan then called a state of emergency and suspended most provisions of the constitution. New elections were held in 1965, but appointed members still retained their majority in the council.
In 1967 Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien abdicated in favour of his eldest son, Hassanal Bolkiah Muʿizzaddin Waddaulah, although the former sultan continued to exercise influence until his death. Brunei’s political life was stable throughout the 1970s in large part because of its flourishing economy and its position as one of the world’s wealthiest (on a per capita basis) oil producers. In 1979 the United Kingdom and Brunei signed a treaty whereby Brunei would become fully independent in 1984. Malaysia and Indonesia both gave assurances that they would recognize Brunei’s status, thereby allaying the sultan’s concern that the state might be incorporated by one of its larger neighbours.
Ooi Jin Bee Pushpa Thambipillai Mohamad Yusop DamitSultanate
Brunei duly gained independence on January 1, 1984, and an Islamic sultanate was proclaimed. The Legislative Council, which had become an entirely appointed body by decree of the sultan in 1970, was suspended, and a ministerial form of government was introduced. The sultan became prime minister, in addition to holding several other ministerial posts, and he appointed members of his family to most of the other positions, including his father as defense minister. When his father died in September 1986, the sultan assumed the important defense post and enlarged his cabinet.
In 1990 the sultan encouraged Bruneians to adopt Melayu Islam Beraja (MIB; “Malay Islamic Monarchy”), the country’s official ideology. The movement, which celebrated traditional Bruneian values and called for more rigid adherence to traditional Islamic principles, was viewed with anxiety by non-Muslims, particularly members of the Chinese community. Nevertheless, for much of the late 20th century the sultanate experienced both political and economic stability (though it did suffer during the Asian financial crisis of the late 1990s), and its citizens continued to enjoy a very high standard of living. However, the economy’s heavy reliance on petroleum and natural gas, both nonrenewable sources of energy, led the government to pursue economic diversification more aggressively.
In the mid-1980s two political parties, the Brunei National Democratic Party and the Brunei National United Party, were legalized, but membership restrictions were imposed (e.g., government employees, who made up a significant proportion of Brunei’s citizens, were excluded) and their activities impeded by the government. After only a few years, both parties were banned. The Brunei National United Party was allowed to operate again beginning in 1995, and in the early 21st century it was joined by two new parties, the People’s Awareness Party and the National Development Party. In 2004 the sultan reconvened the Legislative Council, which had not met in 20 years, to discuss constitutional amendments. Although provision for an elected component of the Legislative Council was among the approved amendments, the sultan reformed the council in 2005 with an entirely appointed membership. Meanwhile, two of the three political parties were deregistered, leaving the National Development Party as the sole legal party by 2007.
Pushpa Thambipillai Mohamad Yusop DamitSyariah Penal Code for stricter implementation of Islamic law
Brunei’s movement toward stricter Islamic practices initially included measures such as banning the sale of alcoholic beverages and requiring that Muslim children receive religious instruction. Courts for Islamic law (Sharīʿah; Syariah in Malay) also functioned to help Muslims settle personal matters such as marriage disputes. The sultan had long wanted to expand Syariah to include criminal offenses by Muslims, and in October 2013 he announced that such a policy would become official the following year. The first of its three phases covers crimes with lesser punishments, such as fines and prison sentences for offenses such as failing to observe the fast during Ramadan, and was implemented in May 2014. The second phase, covering crimes penalized by corporal punishments, such as whipping or amputation for theft, was delayed after international backlash. The final phase covered crimes with severe punishments, such as stoning for adultery or sodomy and the death penalty for insulting the Qurʾān. Both the second and the final phase took effect in April 2019.
Foreign relations
At independence in 1984, Brunei’s relations with neighbouring Malaysia were strained over boundary and territorial disputes in Sarawak. Ties between the two countries gradually improved, as most of the border issues were resolved, but Brunei still claimed the Limbang region of Sarawak between the two portions of Brunei. In 2009 an agreement was reached by which Brunei would drop its claim on Limbang and Malaysia would forgo its claim to oil-rich areas in the South China Sea that the two countries had contested. However, the two countries would jointly exploit any reserves found there.
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica