Islam in Southeast Asia

4. Brunei

41 Islam has had a long history in Brunei, having reached its shores from about the thirteenth century, if not earlier. From Chinese historical records, Brunei was then called Poli (or Polo). The discovery of ancient Chinese coins in Brunei’s Kota Batu region and the sending of “goodwill goods” (ivory and spices) by the Brunei royalty to China during the Sung dynasty, reinforced the view that Brunei had established trading links with China and the international community at large during that early period of its history. Other historical artifacts, such as the classical poem, the Syair Awang Semaun, also recorded the cock fighting victory of the Brunei king (Awang Alak Betaar) over that of the Majapahit king (Raden Angsuka), suggesting diplomatic links with Majapahit, then a regional power. Awang Alak Betaar was reported to have converted to Islam by the Muslim Sultan of Johore (old Singapore) after Betaar’s visit there and after his subsequent marriage to the Johore princess in the 1360s. Taking on his new name of Sultan Muhammad Shah, the Brunei Sultan soon encountered an Arab trader from Mecca, Sharif Ali, who was said to have taught the Sultan about Islam. When Sharif Ali himself was later installed as Brunei’s third king in 1426, he used the authority to consolidate the Islamization process that was first started by Sultan Muhammad Shah. Chapter฀4 Brunei ISLAM฀in฀SEA฀p1-94.indd฀฀฀41 2/1/08฀฀฀11:55:11฀AM 42฀ Islam฀in฀Southeast฀Asia Many scholars, however, opined that it was during the reign of Sultan Bolkiah, Brunei’s fifth Sultan, in the sixteenth century (1485–1524), that Brunei reached the apex of its Islamic glory, having by then also taking over the role of Malacca as the centre of Islam in Southeast Asia. Under his leadership, Brunei expanded its territorial boundaries to include what is presently the Philippines, Sabah and Sarawak. His marriages with the princesses of the conquered regions (such as Sulu and Manila) also helped the spread of Islam in this part of the world. The Spanish’s arrival in the Philippines, however, and its insistence that Brunei allowed the spread of Christianity in the country, led to the Brunei-Spanish war, which ended with the brief Spanish conquest in 1578, before Brunei regained its territory about three months later. The seventeenth century, however, witnessed Brunei’s decline after a series of rivalries within the ruling royalty. This decline was exploited by the British when James Brooke became the new ruler of the kingdom and Sarawak was governed by the White Rajahs. Brunei’s foreign affairs was also placed under the jurisdiction of the British Queen. The country’s fortunes turned for the better yet again in the twentieth century when Sultan Omar Saifuddin was installed as the twenty-eighth Ruler in 1950. Under his leadership, the country managed to assume sovereignty from Britain. Recent records indicated that the Sultan had originally planned to join the Malaysian federation in 1963. However, the earlier revolt against the monarchy in December 1962 by Yassin Affandi and his armed rebels and the opposition from the Brunei Peoples’ Party (Parti Rakyat Brunei) led by A. M. Azahari, which had won a large majority in the 1962 General Election, led him to abort the merger plan; instead, he opted to become a British dependency. With the help of British troops from Singapore, the rebellion was quashed and for many years since then, the ISLAM฀in฀SEA฀p1-94.indd฀฀฀42 2/1/08฀฀฀11:55:11฀AM Brunei฀ 43 Sultan has clamped down on any democratic experiment in the tiny oil-rich State. That rebellion not only led to his declaration of a state of emergency but the banning of the Parti Rakyat Brunei, the ammendments to the 1959 Constitution and the abolishment of parliament. From a British protectorate since 1888, Brunei gained independence in 1984. Soon after, the country adopted the official name of Negara Brunei Darussalam (Brunei, The Abode of Peace). Today, Brunei’s oil and gas wealth has again made the country very prosperous. With a national income per head of $26,800 (2006 estimate), the Sultan and his family — which has a near monopoly of power in the State — governs all aspects of life in the kingdom, including matters relating to Islam. The reigning Sultan, Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Wadaulah — henceforth to be referred to as Sultan Bolkiah — is...