Robertson: Condemns Ministry of Education honoring Brunei’s Sultan
BANGKOK: Human Rights Watch Asia’s Deputy Director Phil Robertson condemns the Malaysian Ministry of Education chair honoring
Brunei’s Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah “leadership” in shariah law which focuses on stoning people to death, whipping & amputations.
” Why is #Malaysia‘s Ministry of Education @KemPendidikan setting up university chair honoring #Brunei‘s rights abusing Sultan? Sultan’s “leadership” in shariah law focuses on stoning people to death, whipping & amputations. PM @chedetofficial pls say NO.” tweeted Robertson on his Twitter urging Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir Mohammad to say no.
He also tweeted as following condemning sharia criminal law as right abusing, “The Sultan’s speech shows the international campaign on #Brunei is working, and now more pressure is needed. The entire #sharia criminal law should be scrapped because it’s a rights-abusing monstrosity reminiscent of medieval yesteryear that has no place in the modern age @hrw”.
“The Sultan’s speech on 5 May, stating #Brunei will ratify the UN Convention against #Torture, is absurd when the #Sharia criminal code he promulgated contains provisions for whipping, executions & amputations. He’s not fooling anyone. Must revoke that law now, not play word games”, he added to his remarks on Twitter.
Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Chair for Islamic Leadership has been proposed to be set up at Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM).
The Education Ministry, in a statement today, said the setting up of the chair would focus on Islamic leadership study, management and implementation and syariah law.
It was hoped that the Chair would turn Malaysia and Brunei into a hub for the spread of knowledge related to the Malay sultanate specifically and leadership in general at the international level.
According to the ministry, the proposal on its setting up had been submitted for the consent of Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah today. With this, the Chair can be used as a centre for study, research, reference, and gathering of documentation related to the Malay sultanate and Islamic leadership.
Recently Brunei’s Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah received a global backlash
led by celebrities such as George Clooney and Elton John when he extended a moratorium on the death penalty to incoming legislation prohibiting gay sex.
The country sparked an outcry when it rolled out its interpretation of Islamic laws, or Syariah, on April 3, punishing sodomy, adultery, and rape with death, including by stoning.
Brunei has consistently defended its right to implement the laws, elements of which were first adopted in 2014 and which have been rolled out in phases since then.
