Brunei on the Morrow of Independence
Background In the 16th century, Brunei's hegemony extended from Manila on the north to some indeterminate area of south Borneo. Spain and a resurgent kingdom of Sulu reduced Brunei dominion in the north; unknown events limited Brunei control to the southern boundary of present-day Sarawak by the 19th century, when European and American adventurers carved Sarawak and Sabah, now parts of Malaysia, from Brunei's remainder. In 1888 Britain established a loose umbrella of protection and control over Brunei, Sarawak, and Sabah, but in 1890 Charles Brooke, Raja of Sarawak, seized the last remaining large district of Brunei, the Limbang. Britain ultimately approved the seizure-though it divided Brunei into two geographically separate parts. In 1906 a Britsh Resident was established in Brunei. Britain hoped to reunite Brunei's former parts, but nothing came of those plans. In 1929 oil was discovered and the state became viable.
Brunei: The ASEAN Connection
Although no formal mechanism for accession has yet been announced, it is expected by Brunei and its future partners that the Sultanate will become the sixth member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 1984, after it obtains full sovereignty over its external affairs.' The characteristic ASEAN decision-making process of formal and informal consultations (musyawarah) leading to consensus (mufakat) is in full train. Brunei's candidature was announced at the June 1981 annual ASEAN Foreign Ministers meeting in Manila. Brunei was invited as an "observer" and was represented by the Sultan's brother, Prince Mohammad Bolkiah, who is the Perdana Wazir and probably will be Brunei's first Foreign Minister. In his address to the conference, Prince Mohammad stated that it was the hope of Brunei that the question of its membership in ASEAN could be favorably resolved once independence was achieved.2 If the statements of ASEAN leaders to date are any guide, there would appear to be little doubt that when Brunei makes its application, it will be accepted. In fact, membership in ASEAN may be the sine qua non of Brunei's independence. Brunei's inclusion in ASEAN will mark the first enlargement of the group since the original five (Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, and the Philippines) signed the Bangkok Declaration in 1967. Brunei is not the only potential member. Sri Lanka has openly campaigned for membership, to the private distress of ASEAN leadership. Although questions of geographic proximity are raised concerning Sri Lanka's would-be ASEAN role, it would seem that other considerations are more significant in determining the generally negative reactions in ASEAN. Papua New Guinea too is associated with ASEAN, but its prospects for full membership, even if it desired, would
Decolonisation and International Status: The Experience of Brunei
T N the final quarter of the twentieth century, the residual practice of decolonisation has been influenced by standards sanctioned by its previous beneficiaries who dominate the General Assembly of the United Nations. Governments which claim legitimacy on the basis of a popular will, expressed-if at all-more often than not in managed elections and referenda, have affirmed conventions about the bases of post-colonial state succession, especially the inalienable right of self-determination. Internal consistency has not always been the strongest quality of such affirmation. For example, constitutional association with a traditional colonial power is likely to be challenged even in the face of the verifiable wishes of the inhabitants of any imperial residuum. Thus, the people of the Falkland Islands and Gibraltar have been encouraged to contemplate life under Argentine and Spanish rule. In these cases, physical distance from the metropolitan power and close contiguity to claimant states have bulked large, whereas the principle of self-determination has been conveniently overlooked. Such inconsistency of standards in the urging of decolonisation does not appear to be the case for the Sultanate of Brunei, a mere vestige of a Malay-Moslem suzerainty which once extended over the entire area of Northem Borneo. Brunei offends against all the canons of new statehood. This is not because of its minuscule size which might seem to validate charges of non-viability. Such charges are hardly permitted in an age which has seen numerous micro-states accepted as legitimate members of the international community. The fact that one of the oil majors exercises an overwhelming role in its economy also does not place Brunei in either a unique or a pariah position. Brunei has been condemned as an objectionable political anachronism because of its exclusive association with the United Kingdom and because as a direct consequence of that association it is governed openly on a monarchical basis without deference to the orthodoxies of popular participation. As a result, i,ts international status is questionable in the opinion of a vast majority of the members of the UN General Assembly. A relevant factor in successive attempts to make the Sultanate conform to the standards espoused by this majority has been