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Child Soldiers Global Report 2001 - Brunei Darussalam

Mainly covers the period June 1998 to April 2001 as well as including some earlier information.

• Population:
  – total: 322,000
  – under-18s: 124,000
• Government armed forces:
  – active: 5,000
  – reserves: 700
  – paramilitary: 3,750
• Compulsory recruitment age: no conscription
• Voluntary recruitment age: unknown
• Voting age (government elections): unknown
• Child soldiers: unknown
• CRC-OP-CAC: not signed
• Other treaties ratified: CRC; GC/API+II.

• It is not known if there are under-18s in government armed forces due to insufficient information regarding recruitment age.

GOVERNMENT

National Recruitment Legislation and Practice

There is no conscription in Brunei, and the government has no plans for its introduction.²⁷⁶ However, Article 83 of the 1959 Constitution on State of Emergency states that "when a proclamation of emergency has been made and as long as such proclamation is in force, his Majesty the Sultan and Yang di-Pertuan may make any orders whatsoever which he considers desirable in the public interest." Such orders may be made with regard to: Article 83(4)(i) "requiring persons to do work or render services" and Article 83(4)(j) "constituting a special police force."²⁷⁷

Reportedly, only ethnic Malays, who form 67 per cent of the population, are allowed to join the armed forces.²⁷⁸ Women may join but may not serve in combat; the Women's Company was formed in 1981.²⁷⁹

It is reported that there are 945 Gurkhas, Nepalese soldiers who are part of the British Army, stationed in Brunei.²⁸⁰

Military Training and Military Schools

There is no available information regarding minimum age of entry into the various military schools in Brunei.²⁸¹

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276 Brett and McCallin op. cit.; Horeman and Stolwijk op. cit.

277 Blaustein and Flanz op. cit.

278 Horeman and Stolwijk op. cit.

279 "RBAF-the nation's sentinel", Borneo Bulletin, 29/5/98; US Department of State, Brunei Country Report on Human Rights Practice for 1998, 26/2/99.

280 "UK Government: Gurkha pensions to double in 2000", M2 Presswire, 24/12/99.

281 See the official web site of the Ministry of Defence, http://www.mindef.gov.bn.

Topics: Child soldiers, Military service,