DDHK News, Brunei - Sultan of Brunei, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah emphasized the application of Islamic Sharia in his country as "the greatest achievement". He raised this in the Brunei parliament, Thursday (06/03/14), in response to concerns from several parties.
Starting April 2014, this small country in Southeast Asia began to gradually implement Islamic Sharia regulations, including implementing the law of cutting hands for thieves and stoning for adulterers. In limited situations, the punishment could also be applied to non-Muslims in the oil-rich country.
Public criticism of the government is extremely rare in the country, but a number of citizens have posted messages on the internet to express their concerns. About a third of Brunei's 440.000 residents are a non-Muslim group, most of whom are Christian or ethnic Chinese who are Buddhist.
The greatest achievement
Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah said that all races must unite and support the implementation of the law. He emphasized that the application of Islamic law is a "greatest achievement ... and not a decline or an ancient step."
The plan to implement the Sharia has raised concerns from international human rights groups, but Bolkiah said: "people outside Brunei must respect us in the same way we respect them."
Brunei is known as a kingdom with conservative religious views, where alcohol is prohibited and religious courts have the authority to regulate family affairs.
Officials say that the sentences under the new law will not be carried out until around 2017.
Muslims in a number of neighboring countries such as Malaysia and the province of Aceh in Indonesia are also limited subjects for the enactment of Islamic Sharia. In Malaysia there is no type of corporal punishment, while in Aceh the local government carries out a type of caning.
In general, the interpretation and practice of Islam in Southeast Asia is considered to be more moderate than in the Middle East and South Asia. (afp / ap / rtr / dw.de). *
