Caning Caning is a form of corporal punishment consisting of a number of hits (known as "strokes" or "cuts") with a single cane usually made of rattan, generally applied to the offender's bare or clothed buttocks (see spanking) or hands (on the ...

is used as a form of

judicial corporal punishment The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...

Brunei Brunei ( , ), formally Brunei Darussalam ( ms, Negara Brunei Darussalam, Jawi: , ), is a country located on the north coast of the island of Borneo in Southeast Asia. Apart from its South China Sea coast, it is completely surrounded by th ...

. This practice is heavily influenced by Brunei's history as a British protectorate from 1888 to 1984. Similar forms of corporal punishment are also used in two of Brunei's neighbouring countries,

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...

and

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federal constitutional monarchy consists of thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo's East Mal ...

, which are themselves former British colonies. The courts routinely sentence adult male criminals to caning for a wide range of offences similar to those punishable by caning in Malaysia. It is usually, or possibly always, ordered ''in addition to'' a prison sentence. In the case of juvenile male offenders, however, caning is sometimes ordered as a single punishment without the prison term. The procedure is generally similar to that in Singapore and Malaysia.

Judicial caning under criminal law

Sections 257–260 of Brunei's Criminal Procedure Code lay down the procedures governing caning, which is referred to as "whipping" in the Code in accordance with traditional British legislative terminology. The procedures include the following: * Women, men above the age of 50, and men sentenced to death cannot be sentenced to caning. * The offender cannot be sentenced to more than 24 strokes of the cane in a single trial. In the case of a juvenile offender, the number of strokes is capped at 18.Criminal Procedure Code 257. * The

rattan Rattan, also spelled ratan, is the name for roughly 600 species of Old World climbing palms belonging to subfamily Calamoideae. The greatest diversity of rattan palm species and genera are in the closed- canopy old-growth tropical fores ...

cane used shall not be more than in diameter.Prisons Rules 129(3). * In the case of a juvenile offender, the caning is inflicted in the way of school discipline using a light rattan cane. * A medical officer or hospital assistant is required to certify that the offender is in a fit state of health to undergo the punishment. * If the medical officer or hospital assistant certifies that the offender is not in a fit state of health to be caned, the offender will be sent back to the court for the caning sentence to be remitted or converted to a prison term of up to 12 months, in addition to the original prison term he was sentenced to. Under Bruneian criminal law, offences punishable by caning include causing hurt,

assault An assault is the act of committing physical harm or unwanted physical contact upon a person or, in some specific legal definitions, a threat or attempt to commit such an action. It is both a crime and a tort and, therefore, may result in cr ...

theft Theft is the act of taking another person's property or services without that person's permission or consent with the intent to deprive the rightful owner of it. The word ''theft'' is also used as a synonym or informal shorthand term for som ...

robbery Robbery is the crime of taking or attempting to take anything of value by force, threat of force, or by use of fear. According to common law, robbery is defined as taking the property of another, with the intent to permanently deprive the perso ...

extortion Extortion is the practice of obtaining benefit through coercion. In most jurisdictions it is likely to constitute a criminal offence; the bulk of this article deals with such cases. Robbery is the simplest and most common form of extortion, ...

, and

trespassing Trespass is an area of tort law broadly divided into three groups: trespass to the person, trespass to chattels, and trespass to land. Trespass to the person historically involved six separate trespasses: threats, assault, battery, wounding, ...

. It is a mandatory punishment for certain offences such as

rape Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ...

kidnapping In criminal law, kidnapping is the unlawful confinement of a person against their will, often including transportation/asportation. The asportation and abduction element is typically but not necessarily conducted by means of force or fear: the p ...

, and overstaying one's visa. Approximately 100 caning sentences are passed down every year in Brunei. In 2007, 68 foreign workers were sentenced to caning for immigration offences. The ''modus operandi'' of judicial caning in Brunei appears to resemble that in Singapore more than that in Malaysia. It is not inflicted in instalments. During the punishment, the offender is tied to a wooden frame in a bent-over position with his feet together, and receives strokes from the rattan cane on the bare buttocks. The effects of caning, which include severe physical damage and permanent scarring, are generally the same across all the three countries. News reports from Brunei show that the Prison Department, from time to time, brings students on prison tours or hold talks in their schools to educate them on crime. During such visits, prison officials conduct demonstrations of caning on dummies.

Comparison of judicial caning in Brunei, Malaysia and Singapore

Judicial caning is also used as a form of legal punishment for criminal offences in two of Brunei's neighbouring countries, Malaysia and Singapore. There are some differences across the three countries.

Caning under sharia law

In 2014, the

Sultan of Brunei The sultan of Brunei is the monarchical head of state of Brunei and head of government in his capacity as prime minister of Brunei. Since independence from the British in 1984, only one sultan has reigned, though the royal institution dates ...

advocated the adoption of a

sharia Sharia (; ar, شريعة, sharīʿa ) is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition. It is derived from the religious precepts of Islam and is based on the sacred scriptures of Islam, particularly the Quran and the H ...

(''syariah'' in Bahasa Melayu Brunei) penal code, which included whipping (caning) for certain offences. In February that year, an 18-member Bruneian delegation visited Saudi Arabia to learn about the implementation of the sharia penal code. The sharia penal code was enacted in 2014 and prescribes sharia-style whipping of up to 100 strokes for certain offences.

Reformatory corporal punishment

Juvenile male offenders in reformatory institutions may be punished by "whipping with a light cane" for serious breaches of discipline. The maximum number of strokes allowed is ten if the offender is above 14, and six if the offender is 14 and below. A medical officer is required to be present to supervise the punishment.

International criticism

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and s ...

considers Brunei's practice of judicial caning a form of torture, and points out that the sharia penal code contains provisions that violate human rights. However, Brunei has not ratified the

United Nations Convention against Torture The Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (commonly known as the United Nations Convention Against Torture (UNCAT)) is an international human rights treaty under the review of the United Nation ...

. In May 2013, Brunei elicited strong criticisms from internet users in Thailand after it sentenced two Thai nationals to imprisonment and three strokes of the cane each for overstaying their visa.

References

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External links

*Farrell, C. (2019)
''Judicial caning in Singapore, Malaysia and Brunei'' (2019 edition).
Retrieved 28 March 2019 fro
World Corporal Punishment Research
Law of Brunei Corporal punishments Whipping