Government & politics — Brunei

derivation of the name is unclear; according to legend, MUHAMMAD SHAH, who would become the first sultan of Brunei, upon discovering what would become Brunei exclaimed "Baru nah," which roughly translates as "there" or "that's it"

• National Day, 23 February (1984)
• note - 1 January 1984 was the date of independence from the UK, 23 February 1984 was the date of independence from British protection
• the Sultan's birthday, 15 June

• history: drafted 1954 to 1959, signed 29 September 1959; note - some constitutional provisions suspended since 1962 under a State of Emergency,
• others suspended since independence in 1984 amendments: proposed by the monarch; passage requires submission to the Privy Council for Legislative Council review and finalization takes place by proclamation; the monarch can accept or reject changes to the original proposal provided by the Legislative Council; amended several times, last in 2010

mixed legal system based on English common law and Islamic law; note - in April 2019, the full sharia penal codes came into force and apply to Muslims and partly to non-Muslims in parallel with present common law codes

• chief of state: Sultan and Prime Minister Sir HASSANAL Bolkiah (since 5 October 1967); note - the monarch is
• both chief of state and head of government head of government: Sultan and Prime
• Minister Sir HASSANAL Bolkiah (since 5 October 1967) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed and presided over by the monarch; note - 4 additional advisory councils appointed by the monarch are the Religious Council, Privy Council for constitutional issues, Council of Succession, and Legislative Council; Sultan and Prime Minister Sir HASSANAL Bolkiah is also Minister of Finance, Defense,
• and Foreign Affairs and Trade elections/appointments: none; the monarchy is hereditary

Description

unicameral Legislative Council or Majlis Mesyuarat Negara Brunei (33 seats; 20 members appointed by the sultan from ex-officio cabinet ministers, titled people, and prominent citizens in public service and various professional fields, 13 members from 4 multi-seat constituencies, and 3 ex-officio members - the speaker and first and second secretaries); members serve 5-year terms

Elections

January 2023 - appointed by the sultan

Election Results

• Legislative Council last appointed January 2023
• composition men 30, women 4, percent of women 11.8%

• highest court(s): Supreme Court (consists of the Court of Appeal and the High Court, each with a chief justice and 2 judges); Sharia Court (consists the Court of Appeals and the High Court); note - Brunei has a dual judicial system of secular and sharia (religious) courts; the Judicial Committee of Privy Council (in London) serves as the final appellate
• court for civil cases only judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court judges appointed by the monarch to serve until age 65, and older if approved by the monarch; Sharia Cour
• t judges appointed by the monarch for life subordinate courts: Intermediate Court; Magistrates' Courts; Juvenile Court; small claims courts; lower sharia courts

• National Development Party or NDP [Zainal Talib]
• Note: the NDP is Brunei’s only registered party, but does not have representation in the Legislative Council, which is appointed

• no citizenship by descent only: the f
• no residency requirement for naturalization: 12 years

ADB, APEC, ARF, ASEAN, C, CP, EAS, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (NGOs), ICRM, IDA, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, NAM, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIFIL, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

chief of mission

Ambassador Caryn R. McCLELLAND (since December 2021) embassy: Simpang 336-52-16-9, Jalan Duta, Bandar Seri Begawan, BC4115 mailing address: 4020 Bandar Seri Begawan Place, Washington DC 20521-4020

telephone

(673) 238-7400

FAX

(673) 238-7533

Email address and website

• ConsularBrunei@state.gov
• https://bn.usembassy.gov/

chief of mission

Ambassador Dato Paduka Haji Serbini bin Haji ALI (since 28 January 2016)

chancery

3520 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone

[1] (202) 237-1838

FAX

[1] (202) 885-0560

Email address and website

• info@bruneiembassy.org
• http://www.bruneiembassy.org/index.html