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| Brunei | Introduction | Back to Top |
Brunei, officially Nation of Brunei, Abode of Peace (Malay, Negara Brunei Darussalam), sultanate on the northern coast of the island of Borneo, eastern Asia, bounded on the north by the South China Sea, and on all other sides by the Malaysian state of Sarawak, which also divides the country into two parts. The total area is 5,765 sq km (2,226 sq mi). The capital is Bandar Seri Begawan.
Official Name- The Sultanate of Brunei| Brunei | Provinces | Back to Top |
4 districts (daerah-daerah, singular - daerah); Belait, Brunei and Muara, Temburong, Tutong
| Brunei | People | Back to Top |
Minorities include Chinese, Indians, and various indigenous peoples, such as Dayaks and Belaits. The official language is Malay, but English is also used for official purposes. Islam is the state religion, and the majority of the people are Muslims.
About two-thirds of the population of Brunei is Malay, and nearly one-fifth is Chinese. The remainder includes such indigenous peoples as the Kadazan (Kedazan), Murut, Bisaya (Bisayah), and Iban (or Sea Dayak), as well as small numbers of Indians and foreigners. The official language is Malay, with English as a major second language. Brunei's population is predominantly Sunnite Muslim, although the Chinese usually are Buddhist, Taoist, or Confucian. Some of the indigenous peoples are Christian, while others in the remote interior are spirit worshipers.
| Brunei | History | Back to Top |
In the early 16th century Brunei was a sultanate with nominal authority over the whole of Borneo and some parts of the Sulu Islands in the Philippines. It was first visited by Europeans in 1521, by the Spanish navigator Juan Sebastián del Cano. After this encounter, trade with Europeans, as well as piratical activities directed against them, developed quickly. The Spanish captured the capital in 1580 but were soon compelled to evacuate it.
Brunei's early history is obscure, but it was known to be trading with and paying tribute to China in the 6th century AD. It then came under Hindu influence for a time through allegiance to the Majapahit kingdom in Java. When the ships of Ferdinand Magellan's expedition 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, Brunei was torn by internal strife. A gradual decline in power continued through the 19th century, notably with the cession of Sarawak to the English adventurer James (later Sir James) Brooke in 1841, the expansion of Sarawak by additional grants to Brooke, the cession to Britain of the island of Labuan in Brunei Bay, and the final loss of what is now Sabah (eastern East Malaysia). Brunei's fortunes began to revive, however, when petroleum was first produced in 1929.
In 1645 a Spanish expedition failed to end Malay piracy in the region. Brunei was noted as a haven for pirates at the end of the 18th century. About 1849 the British, seeking to protect commerce between Singapore and northwest Borneo, started operations against the pirate fleets and destroyed them within five years. A few years earlier the sultan of Brunei, Omar Ali Saifuddin II, had granted Sarawak to the British army officer James Brooke as a reward for aid in quelling a civil war. Brooke assumed the title of raja and gradually extended his territory at the sultan’s expense (see Brooke, Sir James).
| Brunei | Culture | Back to Top |
At varying times, Cambodian culture also absorbed Javanese, Chinese, and Thai influences.Between the 9th and 15th centuries, a prosperous and powerful empire flourished in northwestern Cambodia. The Khmer kingdom of Angkor, named for its capital city, dominated much of what is now Laos, Vietnam, and Thailand. The kingdom drew its religious and political inspiration from India. The literary language of the court was Sanskrit; the spoken language was Khmer.
| Brunei | Life | Back to Top |
About two-thirds of the population of Brunei is Malay. Minorities include Chinese, Indians, and various indigenous peoples, such as Dayaks and Belaits. At the 1991 census, the population of Brunei was 260,863. The 2001 estimated population was 343,653, yielding an overall population density of 60 persons per sq km (154 per sq mi). The capital and chief town is Bandar Seri Begawan.
| Brunei | Land | Back to Top |
The narrow coastal plain in the north gives way to rugged hills farther south. Brunei's highest point is Pagon Peak (6,070 feet [1,850 metres]), in the southeast. The country is drained by the Belait, Tutong, and Brunei rivers in the western enclave and by the Pandaruan and Temburong rivers in the east; all flow generally northward to the South China Sea
| Brunei | Plants and Animal | Back to Top |
Of minor importance to the economy is the production of rubber, pepper, and animal hides.
| Brunei | Economy | Back to Top |
The economy of Brunei is overwhelmingly dependent on the production of petroleum and natural gas. Oil fields were first discovered at Seria in 1929, but production has now expanded to offshore fields. Crude-oil output in 1999 was 75 million barrels. Of minor importance to the economy is the production of rubber, pepper, and animal hides. Production of the chief food crop, rice, does not meet national needs. Local industries include cloth weaving and metalwork. Exploitation of the country’s forest reserves is increasing. The country has 1,712 km (1,064 mi) of roads, mostly along the coast. Rivers form the principal network of transportation into the interior. The chief ports are Bandar Seri Begawan, Kuala Belait, and Muara. Royal Brunei Airlines, the state-owned carrier, provides service to a number of international destinations.
petroleum and natural gas, Brunei has rich—though undeveloped—deposits of white-quartz sand. Oil was first produced in 1929, while the natural gas industry was developed after the discovery in the 1960s of large deposits. Nearly all the oil and natural gas produced in Brunei comes from offshore fields located off the western enclave. All but a small percentage of the production is exported, a small refinery supplying local needs. Oil output peaked in the late 1970s and subsequently was reduced in order to conserve reserves. Brunei's huge deposits of natural gas were intensively developed in the 1970s, including the construction of a gas liquefaction plant. As a result, export earnings from liquid natural gas have come to roughly equal those from petroleum.
This small, wealthy economy is a mixture of foreign and domestic entrepreneurship, government regulation and welfare measures, and village tradition. Exports of crude oil and natural gas account for over half of GDP. Per capita GDP is far above most other Third World countries, and substantial income from overseas investment supplements income from domestic production. The government provides for all medical services and subsidizes rice and housing. Brunei's leaders are concerned that steadily increased integration in the world economy will undermine internal social cohesion although it became a more prominent player by serving as chairman for the 2000 APEC (Asian Pacific Economic Cooperation) forum. Plans for the future include upgrading the labor force, reducing unemployment, strengthening the banking and tourist sectors, and, in general, a further widening of the economic base beyond oil and gas.
| Brunei | Communications | Back to Top |
general assessment: service throughout country is excellent; international service good to Europe, US, and East Asia domestic: every service available international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean and 1 Pacific Ocean); digital submarine cable links to Malaysia, Singapore, and Philippines (2001)
| Brunei | Languages | Back to Top |
The official language is Malay, but English is also used for official purposes. Islam is the state religion, and the majority of the people are Muslims.
| Brunei | Politics | Back to Top |
Brunei Solidarity National Party or PPKB in Malay [Haji Mohd HATTA bin Haji Zainal Abidin, president]; the PPKB is the only legal political party in Brunei; it was registered in 1985, but became largely inactive after 1988, it was revived in 1995 and again in 1998; it has less than 200 registered party members; other parties include Brunei People's Party or PRB (banned in 1962) and Brunei National Democratic Party (registered in May 1965, deregistered by the Brunei Government in 1988) Political pressure groups and leaders: NA
| Brunei | Government | Back to Top |
Brunei is governed under a constitution promulgated in 1959, as amended. Under the constitution, executive authority is held by the Council of Ministers, which is presided over by the sultan of Brunei, and by the chief minister (mentri besar), who is responsible to the sultan. Since 1962, however, the sultan has ruled by decree. Brunei is a member of the United Nations (UN) and the Commonwealth of Nations.
| Brunei | Legal | Back to Top |
Legal system: based on English common law; for Muslims, Islamic Shari'a law supersedes civil law in a number of areas Suffrage: none Executive branch: chief of state: Sultan and Prime Minister Sir HASSANAL Bolkiah (since 5 October 1967); note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: Sultan and Prime Minister Sir HASSANAL Bolkiah (since 5 October 1967); note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Cabinet Ministers appointed and presided over by the monarch; deals with executive matters; note - there is also a Religious Council (members appointed by the monarch) that advises on religious matters, a Privy Council (members appointed by the monarch) that deals with constitutional matters, and the Council of Succession (members appointed by the monarch) that determines the succession to the throne if the need arises elections: none; the monarch is hereditary Legislative branch: unicameral Legislative Council or Majlis Masyuarat Megeri (a privy council that serves only in a consultative capacity; NA seats; members appointed by the monarch) elections: last held in March 1962 note: in 1970 the Council was changed to an appointive body by decree of the monarch; an elected Legislative Council is being considered as part of constitutional reform, but elections are unlikely for several years Judicial branch: Supreme Court (chief justice and judges are sworn in by the monarch for three-year terms)
| Brunei | organization | Back to Top |
APEC, ARF, ASEAN, C, CCC, ESCAP, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDB, IFRCS, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO
| Brunei | Education | Back to Top |
Medical and educational services are relatively well developed and are largely financed by revenues from petroleum production. Education is compulsory for children aged 5 to 16 years and it is free at all levels. Primary and secondary education is provided in Malay, English, or Chinese. The University of Brunei Darussalam (1985) is located in Bandar Seri Begawan. There are also vocational schools and a teacher-training institution. In addition, the government pays the tuition of Brunei students who study at overseas universities.
| Brunei | Defence | Back to Top |
Military branches: Land Forces, Navy, Air Force, Royal Brunei Police Military manpower - military age: 18 years of age Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 106,725 (2001 est.) Military manpower - fit for military service: males age 15-49: 61,640 (2001 est.)
| Brunei | International Disputes | Back to Top |
possibly involved in a complex dispute over the Spratly Islands with China, Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, and Vietnam; in 1984, Brunei established an exclusive fishing zone that encompasses Louisa Reef in the southern Spratly Islands, but has not publicly claimed the island
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