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Brunei
Brunei, countrys full name is Nation of Brunei, Abode of Peace (Malay, Negara Brunei Darussalam), sultanate located on the northern coast of the island of Borneo, in eastern Asia, bounded on the north by the South China Sea, and on all other sides by the Malaysian state of Sarawak, which also divides the country into two parts. The total area is 5,765 sq km (2,226 sq mi).
The terrain of Brunei consists of a narrow coastal plain and a hilly interior. There are extensive swamps, especially in the west and northeast. Most streams flow north to the coast, including the Belait River, the longest in the country. Brunei has a humid, tropical climate, with an average annual temperature of about 27C (about 80F). The annual rainfall is heavy and is concentrated in the monsoon season of November to March, but there is no dry season. Dense tropical rain forests cover much of the interior, occupying 84 percent of the countrys total area. Brunei is rich in wildlife, including monkeys and diverse birds and reptiles. Petroleum and natural gas are the primary mineral resources. Some species are threatened, but considerable revenue from oil sales has kept the pressure off of Bruneis forests. Nearly 20 percent (1996) of the land area is now protected, and the country has ratified the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.
About two-thirds of the population of Brunei is Malay. Minorities include Chinese, Indians, and various indigenous peoples, such as Dayaks and Belaits. The official language is Malay, but English is also used for official purposes. Islam is the state religion, and the majority of the people are Muslims. At the 1991 census, the population of Brunei was 260,863. The 2001 estimated population was 343,653, yielding an overall population density of 60 persons per sq km (154 per sq mi). The capital and chief town is Bandar Seri Begawan. Medical and educational services are relatively well developed and are largely financed by revenues from petroleum production. Education is compulsory for children aged 5 to 16 years and it is free at all levels. Primary and secondary education is provided in Malay, English, or Chinese. The University of Brunei Darussalam (1985) is located in Bandar Seri Begawan. There are also vocational schools and a teacher-training institution. In addition, the government pays the tuition of Brunei students who study at overseas universities.
Brunei is governed under a constitution promulgated in 1959, as amended. Under the constitution, executive authority is held by the Council of Ministers, which is presided over by the sultan of Brunei, and by the chief minister (mentri besar), who is responsible to the sultan. Since 1962, however, the sultan has ruled by decree. Brunei is a member of the United Nations (UN) and the Commonwealth of Nations.
The economy of Brunei is overwhelmingly dependent on the production of petroleum and natural gas. Oil fields were first discovered at Seria in 1929, but production has now expanded to offshore fields. Crude-oil output in 1999 was 75 million barrels. Of minor importance to the economy is the production of rubber, pepper, and animal hides. Production of the chief food crop, rice, does not meet national needs. Local industries include cloth weaving and metalwork. Exploitation of the countrys forest reserves is increasing. The country has 1,712 km (1,064 mi) of roads, mostly along the coast. Rivers form the principal network of transportation into the interior. The chief ports are Bandar Seri Begawan, Kuala Belait, and Muara. Royal Brunei Airlines, the state-owned carrier, provides service to a number of international destinations. Bruneis unit of currency is the Brunei dollar (1.69 Brunei dollars equal U.S.$1; 1999 average). The gross domestic product (GDP) of $15,390 per capita in 1998 was among the worlds highest, although much of this wealth is concentrated in relatively few hands. Muda Hassanal Bolkiah, the sultan of Brunei since 1967, is one of the worlds wealthiest persons. Brunei is a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), a regional trade organization.
In the early 16th century Brunei was a sultanate with nominal authority over the whole of Borneo and some parts of the Sulu Islands in the Philippines. It was first visited by Europeans in 1521, by the Spanish navigator Juan Sebastián del Cano. After this encounter, trade with Europeans, as well as piratical activities directed against them, developed quickly. The Spanish captured the capital in 1580 but were soon compelled to evacuate it. In 1645 a Spanish expedition failed to end Malay piracy in the region. Brunei was noted as a haven for pirates at the end of the 18th century. About 1849 the British, seeking to protect commerce between Singapore and northwest Borneo, started operations against the pirate fleets and destroyed them within five years. A few years earlier the sultan of Brunei, Omar Ali Saifuddin II, had granted Sarawak to the British army officer James Brooke as a reward for aid in quelling a civil war. Brooke assumed the title of raja and gradually extended his territory at the sultans expense (see Brooke, Sir James). By 1846, when the island of Labuan was ceded to Britain, Brunei had been reduced almost to its present size. In 1888 it became a British protectorate. In 1906 the administration of the sultanate of Brunei was placed in the hands of a British resident, although the sultan remained in nominal authority. In 1959 the sultan, Omar Ali Saifuddin III, promulgated the first written constitution. Invited to join the Federation of Malaysia in 1963, Brunei was the only Malay state that elected to remain a British dependency. In January 1979, the British government signed a new treaty with the sultan, Muda Hassanal Bolkiah, and Brunei became an independent sovereign country on January 1, 1984. |