The tiny nation of Brunei, also called Brunei Darussalam is located in Asia and its territory is split into two separate pieces, with the main part having the capital of Bander Seri Begawan on the coast. The tiny nation is wedged into the island of Borneo which has Brunei bordered with Malaysia and also has a coast along the South China Sea in the Indian Ocean.
The small nation used to be much larger and was ruled as an empire, called the Bruneian Empire, which controlled most of the island of Borneo as well as small surrounding coastal islands and a small part of the Philippines. Over time the empire begun to decline and started ceding away territory and eventually the British turned Brunei into a protectorate.
During WW2 Brunei was occupied by the Japanese but was later recaptured by Australian forces backed with US support. Brunei would get independence from Britain in January 1984.
The largest ethnic group in the country are Malays and the largest religion is Sunni Islam which is also designated as the country’s official religion and a mix of Sharia Law is incorporated into the country’s law system. The country’s official language is Malay but English is also recognized. The CIA World Factbook projects the population to reach 464,478 by July 2020. The Brunei Dollar is the currency used, 100 sen or cents make 1 dollar. Interestingly the country has no income tax or VAT as well as no social security taxes, although 5% of people’s salary or income must go to a state-managed provident fund and stamp duty is levied on many documents.
Government Type
The country is run by an absolute monarchy headed by the monarch who is called the Sultan or Yang di-Pertuan which means “(he) who is Lord” in Malay. The Sultan acts as not only Head of State but also designated as the Prime Minister, making him Head of Government. The Sultan of Brunei is one of the world’s richest people.
There is also a unicameral legislative assembly but it is purely consultative, with the final decisions made by the Sultan.
The only bastion of limited democracy are local village elections, although tightly vetted and regulated by the government and Sultan.
There are some parties, but only those that have been allowed.
Monarchy & Executive Government
The Sultan of Brunei is the absolute ruler of the country and also the Prime Minister, making him both Head of State and Head of Government. There are numerous councils that advise the Sultan on a range of different issues but on which the Sultan makes the final decision.
There is a Religious Council that advises the Sultan on matters to do with Islam and laws related to it, such as Sharia Law, and so if any religious laws were to be made it is often that the Sultan would consult with this council first, which is appointed by him, he is not bound to their advice. There is also another council appointed by the Sultan for advice on Adat Istiadat, or state custom.
The Sultan is the supreme commander of the country’s armed forces.
On executive matters the Sultan appoints Ministers and Deputy Ministers to advise him and help to discharge executive and governing policy. These Ministers make up the Council of Ministers or the Cabinet and is headed by the Prime Minister who is the Sultan himself. Although the constitution says those appointed should be among the Malay race who profess Islam, the constitution also says there are no limits to the number of Ministers and he can freely appoint them from the populace, anyone he deems and gives him the option to make a decision of ignoring the guideline of Malay and Islam appointees.
Ministers hold their posts for five years but can simply just be re-appointed again. The Sultan can also remove any Ministers at any time without showing cause. The Sultan can also transfer executive powers from one Minister to another at any time and without cause.
Although the constitution says the Sultan should keep the Council of Ministers notified or consult members of the Council of Ministers on executive and other decisions, there are a number of provisions that allow him not to do that such as reasons of urgency, unimportance deemed by the Sultan. If the reason is urgent the constitution says the Sultan should later inform the Council of Ministers, including the reasons why. The Sultan is not bound by the advice of the Council of Ministers, but must give reasons why.
There is also a Privy Council which include a host of ex-officio members and also as many appointed members as the Sultan decides and who hold their seats as long as the Sultan decides. The Privy Council includes the Sultan himself, a deputy Sultan if one has been appointed, regents if a Council of Regency was appointed, government ministers, Attorney General, Sayar’ie Chief Judge and others such as royal family, high-ranking political advisors and senior/influential Islamic religious leaders and pretty much anyone else who the Sultan sees fit.
The Privy Council advises on the use of powers such as changes to the constitution, conferring of customary ranks, the Sultan’s authority of mercy and anything else that may be conferred on it. The Sultan is not bound to the advice of the council.
The Council can be called only by the Sultan, if there is no Sultan then the Deputy Sultan, if there is no Deputy, then it can be called by the senior male regent if a Council of Regency was appointed, if not then anyone who was designated by the Sultan can call it… otherwise again if not then the Kepala Wazir. If none of these people are available, then there is a descending order of ex-officio members by order of precedence who can summon the Privy Council.
The prerogative of mercy is a number of powers the Sultan can freely use to pardon people, either with or without conditions, remit sentences, grant respite or substitute a less severe form of punishment.
The Sultan also gives Royal Assent to law bills and amendments, he has absolute power to not give assent and to revoke bills and amendments. He can also amend passed bills and then give assent without sending it back to the Legislative Council. He can also choose to give Royal Assent to bills that did not pass the Legislative Council.
The Sultan can prorogue or dissolve the legislative council at any time.
Pretty much all other positions in and related to government are appointed by the Sultan. Including Auditor General and Attorney General.
Legislative Government
Although the Sultan has previously said there would be elections for a legislative assembly, this has yet to come to fruition and so for now there is a single unicameral legislative council in which all of its current 33-members (but it can be as many as 45) are appointed by the Sultan for 5-year terms.
Those who are appointed must be a citizen of Brunei and be at least 21-years or older. A number of things can disqualify an appointee such as being against the state, being deemed of unsound mind by the law and certain court sentences, bankruptcy or someone who has rejected the laws of Islam.
The Sultan can remove or suspend appointed members at any time. The Legislative Council can be given approval by the Sultan to reinstate the member if they deem fit.
The Sultan will appoint a Speaker and Deputy Speaker to oversee the Legislative Council. They can be appointed from members of the council or from those who are not members. The Speaker and Deputy Speaker simply regulate sessions and make sure rules are followed. The Speaker can adjourn a session at any time to get advice from the sultan on a bill or amendment. The Speaker and Deputy Speaker can also vote on bills and amendments and the Speaker can also get a 2nd vote, as a deciding vote, if a bill or amendment has the same number of passes and rejections.
The Sultan can introduce law bills and amendments to the Legislative Council and members of the legislative Council can also introduce bills and amendments, but many bills and amendments, such as bills and amendments to do with money, taxes, the sultanate/monarchy, religion, security and so on must first be approved by the Sultan to be introduced to the Legislative Council.
Law bills and amendments are debated on and either rejected or passed by simple majority. Passed bills or amendments then go to the Sultan for Royal Assent, the Sultan can also even give bills and amendments that failed to pass Royal Assent if he deems it necessary.
Electoral System
There are no elections for executive government, leader or for the legislative council or any advisory councils in Brunei, although the Sultan has previously said the Legislative Council would become electable this has not yet been implemented.
All of the above are appointed by the Sultan. The Sultanate or Monarchy itself is hereditary. The appointed councils and legislative council may have terms but the person or same people can simply be re-appointed after the term ends.
The Legislative Council’s appointed composition includes ex-officio members such as the Prime Minister (who is the Sultan) as well as Ministers. Other titled persons, anyone who in the opinion of the Sultan has given distinguished public service or any other kind of distinction. 15 representatives are currently appointed by the Sultan from the country’s districts, the spread of the 15 among each district is up to the Sultan, if public elections are implemented it appears it will be to elect these 15 members.
The 15 members are selected by village heads and chiefs within the districts and a select committee appointed by the Sultan oversees and certifies those chosen and may reject them, with the village heads and chiefs choosing someone else to replace them, the Sultan can also reject any of the chosen representatives. The Sultan will appoint those he sees fit from those selected.
Public level elections exist for village-level councils but candidates for that are vetted by the government.
Source
My source is from Brunei’s 1959 constitution with amendments through to 2006, but keep in mind that if you are using this in a serious capacity that you should cross-check as it is possible I mis-interpreted something and also the fact that the constitution can easily be amended, meaning that over time this may become outdated.
When a country is ruled absolutely by basically one person, although it isn’t a good thing, it does make typing these up simpler… as the bureaucracy is very much limited.
Next up will be Bulgaria’s government system.
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