Brunei Bans Public Celebration Of Christmas; Muslims Caught Celebrating To Be Jailed

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22 Oct 2013, Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei --- Brunei's Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah smiles as he sits on a stage in Bandar Seri Begawan, in this September 15, 2013 file photo. Oil-rich Brunei will enforce Sharia criminal law next year, the Islamic kingdom's Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah announced on October 22, 2013, with possible punishments including stoning to death for adultery and flogging for drinking alcohol. The law would be enforced from April, said the 67-year-old sovereign, one of the world's wealthiest people who has presided over a shift to more conservative Islam and anti-sedition laws in recent years. REUTERS/Ahim Rani/Files (BRUNEI - Tags: ROYALS CRIME LAW) --- Image by © AHIM RANI/Reuters/Corbis

The oil-rich country of Brunei has banned the public celebration of Christmas, saying it could lead Muslims astray.

A new rule made in the country says any Muslim caught celebrating it and any non-Muslim caught organising public celebrations could face up to five years in jail.

The rule however allows any Christian who wishes to celebrate it in his home and permits Christians to celebrate within their community.

Brunei, which has about 420,000 people, has a 65 percent Muslim population and a 20 percent non-Muslim population made up of mainly Buddhists and Christians.

According to a statement by the country’s Ministry of Religious Affairs, “These enforcement measures are…intended to control the act of celebrating Christmas excessively and openly, which could damage the aqidah (beliefs) of the Muslim community.”

However, the 68-year-old leader of the tiny Asian nation, Hassanal Bolkiah, who has been named as one of the world’s wealthiest men, has a string of hotels in the United States and United Kingdom, including the Dorchester, where Christmas decorations are freely used, Daily Mail reports.

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