The groups here listed are deeply concerned by the Sultanate of Brunei Darussalam’s announcement of a new penal code based on a strict interpretation of Shari’a law. We add our voices to the growing concerns of the international community that this move towards stricter Shari’a law demonstrates a disturbing disregard of basic civil and political rights of the people of Brunei.
Stoning as a cruel form of punishment and discrimination against women
Women’s rights organisations are particularly concerned that the new penal code includes stoning as a punishment for the crime of adultery. There are 15 countries in which stoning is either practised, legalised, or both, and if this law comes into effect, Brunei will be the sixteenth.
