Can you believe this? Brunei has banned Christmas celebration and anyone caught celebrating Christmas could spend minimum of 5 years in jail. And all this is to protect the Muslim faith. Wearing a Santa hat in public in Brunei is an invitation to the jailer.
The former British colony, which gained independence in 1984, sparked worldwide outcry last April when it became the first south-east Asian nation to adopt Islamic law at a national level, raising fears that other nearby countries with a significant Muslim population such as Indonesia or Malaysia might be tempted to follow Brunei’s lead as the region becomes increasingly conservative, according to Reuters.
According to the Borneo Bulletin, the list of offences include: “using their (Christian) religious symbols like cross, lighting candles, making Christmas trees and singing religious songs, sending Christmas greetings, using signs praising the religion, putting up decorations or creating sounds and doing anything that amounts to respecting their religion” which the Imams viewed as going against the teachings of Islam.
But some residents are risking jail time by celebrating the holiday and uploading pictures to social media as part of a campaign called #MyTreedom – celebrating religious freedom. “Some may think that it is a frivolous matter and should not be brought up as an issue”, a group of local imams told the Borneo Bulletin, the Australian newspaper reports. “But as Muslims … we must keep it (following other religions’ celebrations) away as it could affect our Islamic faith”, they said.
Michael Jackson, the late pop singer, was reportedly paid more than £10 million to give a concert in Brunei in 1996 to mark the sultan’s 50th birthday. While Brunei’s rulers don’t implement the aggressive Islamic orthodoxies of nations like Saudi Arabia, together with sanctions for ladies don’t wear headscarfs, the country’s wealthiest Sultan last yr ordered the introduction of Sharia law. The tiny state on the island of Borneo is ruled by Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah and relies on oil and gas exports for its prosperity.
