Brunei decorates for Sultan's birthday party

Brunei decorates for Sultan's birthday party

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN (AFP): Oil-rich Brunei is throwing a
lavish birthday party for its powerful ruler, Sultan Hassanal
Bolkiah, who has invited his favorite pop star Michael Jackson to
perform for his subjects.

Bathed in a sea of lights at night, the Bruneian capital is
decorated with buntings, flags and arches to mark the special day
of the sultan, who turns 50 today.

Sultan Hassanal, reputedly the world's richest man, is also
prime minister and defense minister of the tiny Borneo kingdom of
300,000 people, which has been an Islamic monarchy for six
centuries.

Hassanal wields absolute power over his kingdom, a British
protectorate until 1984 when he reluctantly accepted independence
from London, which still keeps a battalion of Gurkhas here.

The Sultan's birthday is the premier event in the national
calendar, but the state is giving added focus to it this year
because it is his "golden birthday," a government official said.

To mark the event, state-run national carrier Royal Brunei
Airlines is offering a special gift to economy-class passengers
-- a 50-percent discount in fares to selected destinations for a
month from Thursday.

The destinations include Bangkok, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur,
Manila, Osaka, Singapore, Taipei, Jakarta and Beijing.

"You can say that the Jackson concert is the icing on the
cake," a businessman close to the palace said of the
celebrations.

Workers were putting the finishing touches Sunday to an
expensive man-made garden, 40 kilometers from here, that will
include a 30, 000-capacity world-class amphitheater for Jackson
to belt out his songs tomorrow night.

The eight-hectare garden, an extension of the multi-million-
dollar Jerundong theme park, already open to the public, includes
a musical fountain, a mammoth arch made of granite and other
material imported from Italy, China, Germany and Australia.

Many facilities at the theme park, reputedly the biggest in
Southeast Asia, are comparable to those in Disneyland, but it has
not pulled crowds from the region because Brunei authorities have
not publicized it aggressively.

"Ours is the only one of its kind in the world mainly because
the public is admitted free of charge on the kindness of his
majesty, who built it primarily for his subjects," said Ascalon
Jerry, a project architect.

Work on the theme park, supervised by foreign experts
including those from the giant Disney World in Florida, started
in 1993 and the initial phase was completed and opened to the
public in 1995.

Palace sources said the garden project, costing tens of
millions of dollars, was a birthday present from the Sultan's
three brothers. Work on it began only four months ago after
Jackson gave the greenlight to perform here.

Sultan Hassanal, whose fortune is estimated at more than US$30
billion, personally invited Jackson, who flew in here secretly
Saturday in his private jet, sources said.

The American pop icon is staying in one of several palaces in
the capital that will also house Britain's Prince Charles and
several other foreign dignitaries scheduled to arrive later
yesterday for the birthday bash.

As there will be no charge for Jackson's concert, organizers
expect a large turnout, including fans from neighboring Malaysia
and Indonesia.

Many tourists have extended their stay here on hearing of the
concert.