SOAS Research Online

Abstract

This is a study of constitutional and political development in Brunei Darussalam between 1944 and 1962. Responding to new forces unleashed by World War II, British planners in the Colonial Office embarked on a policy of promoting political progress in Brunei Darussalam with the aim of eventually introducing self-government, with the widest possible participation of the people of all communities. The thesis traces the origins of the Colonial Office's plan to introduce constitutional government in Brunei Darussalam, examines the evolution of the plan taking particular account of the obstructive intrusion of certain post-war developments which inevitably delayed the fruition of a full political advancement; and analyses the interaction between the local ruling elite, the British Colonial administration, and the Partai Rakyat Brunei (People's Party of Brunei). In the event the Brunei Darussalam Constitution, promulgated on 29 September 1959, failed to give full satisfaction to a large section of the people, causing in the end a rebellion which broke out on 8 December 1962. It also analyses the British plan to bring Brunei Darussalam in closer association with its neighbours in a loose federation. When this plan failed, the British put pressure on Brunei Darussalam to enter the Malaysia Federation, which inevitably gave impetus to the rebellion. In the end, Brunei Darussalam not only did not join the Malaysia Federation, it also chose not to adopt a democratic form of government. Instead, when it resumed its full independence on 1 January 1984, Brunei chose to be governed by a Sultan under the concept of Malay Islamic Monarchy.