BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, Brunei, April 16 (UPI) -- Brunei is about to pass a penal code that would allow people to be stoned to death for having gay sex.
The penal code allows stoning for multiple offenses: rape, adultery, sodomy, extra-marital sex, gay sex, insulting the Quran or Hadith, blasphemy, declaring oneself a prophet or non-Muslim, and murder.
Brunei hasn't conducted an execution since 1957, but this is a part of Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah's push towards a stricter interpretation of Shariah law.
The United Nations and human rights advocates have condemned Brunei's penal code and have asked the sultan to stop its implementation, as it violates international law.
"We urge the Government to delay the entry into force of the revised penal code and to conduct a comprehensive review ensuring its compliance with international human rights standards," said Rupert Colville, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.
The new penal code will go into effect on April 22.
[HuffPost Live]
