Brunei’s small underground LGBT community has expressed shock and dismay over Brunei’s plan to bring in the punishment of death by stoning for adultery and gay sex. [...]
The new punishments, which also include amputation of hands and feet for thieves, will make Brunei the first country in east or southeast Asia to have a sharia penal code at the national level. Several mostly Middle Eastern countries such as Saudi Arabia also adhere to sharia law.
The penal code was formally published in 2013 but the government said the laws would be enacted over a period of several years, with the most controversial delayed after international outcry. [...]
The United Nations labelled the laws “cruel and inhumane” and well-known figures have lined up to add to their names to the chorus of condemnation, including former US vice president Joe Biden and actress Jamie Lee Curtis. George Clooney and pop star Elton John have called for Brunei-owned hotels to be boycotted. [...]
But the sultan shows no sign of backing down, and the Muslim-majority country issued a statement at the weekend insisting that Brunei “enforces its own rule of law”. In a public address on Wednesday, he called for “stronger” Islamic teachings in the country and said said that Brunei was “fair and happy”.
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