Council calls for action on gay rights

The motion to condemn the South Asian country was moved by Labour group leader  Councillor Mathew Dorrance and backed by Liberal Democrat Gareth Ratcliffe.

It also wants to see Brunei’s membership of the Commonwealth suspended. The motion also included setting up a network for LGBT+ network for council staff.

At a full council meeting, Councillor Dorrance said: “I hope the membership of this council was like me, horrified with the news that Brunei was introducing incredibly harsh capital and corporal punishment for LGBT+ members of their society.

“We have undoubtedly come a long way for equality for LGBT+ people all around the world. I sat down recently with a group of people who are a generation or two older than me when those in same-sex relationships had to have HIV tests to get mortgages.

“As someone who has just bought a house, I nor my partner had to go through that. That’s achieved by people putting their shoulder to the wheel and fighting for equality. If we are not on watch all the time the rights we have won will be taken away.”

Councillor Dorrance added that he had felt sick and cried after finding out that gay people in Brunei could be stoned to death or given lashes.

Independent councillor Tim Van Rees believed that suspending Brunei from the Commonwealth would not help the situation.

He said Brunei’s government needed to be negotiated with to change their minds.

The motion was passed unanimously.

On Sunday, May 5,  Brunei announced it would not be enforcing laws  that would have made sex between men  punishable by stoning to death.

Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah extended a moratorium on the death penalty to cover the new legislation. The rethink follows global outcry over the laws, including boycotts and celebrity protests.

In April, Brunei rolled out a strict new interpretation of Islamic laws, or Sharia.