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| Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah's remarks on capital punishment appeared aimed at assuaging worldwide criticism (AFP Photo/Andrea VERDELLI) |
Bandar Seri Begawan (Brunei) (AFP) - Brunei's sultan said Sunday a moratorium on capital punishment will also extend to sharia laws that include stoning to death for gay sex and adultery, after a furious backlash against the punishments.
It was the
first time Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah had commented publicly on the new penal code
since it fully entered force last month, and his remarks appeared aimed at
assuaging worldwide criticism.
The laws,
which also include amputation of hands and feet for thieves in the tiny sultanate
on Borneo island, sparked fury from celebrities, including actor George
Clooney, the United Nations and rights groups.
In a
televised speech ahead of the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, the
sultan said: "I am aware that there are many questions and misperceptions
with regard to the implementation of the (sharia penal code)."
"There
should not be any concern on the sharia law as it is full of Allah's mercy and
blessings," he said, according to an official translation of his address.
"As evident
for more than two decades, we have practised a de facto moratorium on the
execution of death penalty for cases under the common law.
"This
will also be applied to cases under the (sharia penal code), which provides a
wider scope for remission."
He also
vowed Brunei would ratify the United Nations convention against torture which
it signed several years ago.
Muslim-majority
Brunei operates a dual-track legal system with civil courts operating alongside
sharia courts that handle issues such as marital and inheritance cases.
Some crimes
were already punishable with death by hanging under the civil code but Brunei
has not executed anyone for decades, and the sultan's comments suggest this
will not change with the introduction of the new sharia laws.
Rape and
robbery are also punishable by death under the sharia code and many of the new
laws, such as capital punishment for insulting the Prophet Mohammed, apply to
non-Muslims as well as Muslims.
The sultan
-- one of the world's wealthiest men -- announced plans for the sharia penal
code in 2013.
The first
section was introduced in 2014 and included less stringent penalties, such as
fines or jail terms for offences including indecent behaviour or skipping
Friday prayers.
But the
introduction of the harsher punishments in the former British protectorate of
about 400,000 people was repeatedly delayed after they sparked criticism.
#UPDATE Brunei's sultan has announced that a punishment of death by stoning for gay sex and adultery will not be enforced in the sultanate after a global backlash, but critics Monday called for harsh sharia laws to be abandoned entirely. https://t.co/Pz1DSJiNjr— AFP news agency (@AFP) 6 mei 2019
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