DEATH PENALTY Although abolitionist in practice, death by hanging was maintained as punishment for several offences including murder, terrorism and drug-related crimes. Penal Code amendments, if implemented during phase three, would impose death by stoning as punishment for offences including “adultery”, “sodomy” and rape. Stoning to death or 100 lashes, depending on the offender’s marital status, would be imposed on Muslims and non-Muslims who commit “adultery” with a Muslim. RIGHT TO EDUCATION Stateless children and children who were not citizens of Brunei faced barriers to basic rights, including education. While primary education was free and accessible to citizens, stateless and non-citizen children had to apply for permission to enrol and were often required to pay monthly fees. RIGHTS OF LESBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL, TRANSGENDER AND INTERSEX PEOPLE Consensual same-sex sexual relations remained a criminal offence with “intercourse against the order of nature” punishable by up to 10 years’ imprisonment under Article 377 of the Penal Code. Amendments to the Penal Code would, if implemented, allow a mandatory punishment of death by stoning for consensual same-sex activity (see above). COUNTER-TERROR AND SECURITY Suspects were detained without trial under the Internal Security Act. In February, four Indonesian nationals were detained under the law for alleged links with the armed group Islamic State (IS) and subsequently deported. Amnesty International Report 2017/18 BULGARIA Republic of Bulgaria Head of state: Rumen Radev (replaced Rosen Plevneliev in January) Head of government: Boyko Borisov Summary detentions, pushbacks and abuses at the border continued. The necessary services were not provided to migrants and refugees, including to unaccompanied children. A climate of xenophobia and intolerance sharply intensified. Roma continued to be at risk of pervasive discrimination. REFUGEES’ AND MIGRANTS’ RIGHTS The number of refugees and migrants entering Bulgaria declined, but reports of frequent pushbacks, excessive use of force and theft by border police continued. Irregular border crossing remained criminalized resulting in administrative detention of migrants and refugees, including unaccompanied children, who arrived in greater numbers. Human rights organizations documented numerous allegations of illtreatment of refugees and asylum-seekers and substandard conditions in detention facilities. In February, local authorities in the town of Elin Pelin refused to receive a Syrian family that had been granted humanitarian status in Bulgaria. The Mayor publicly warned that “Muslims from Syria [were] not welcome” and refused to register the family or issue them with identity documents. Other municipalities expressed a similar unwillingness to accommodate refugees. In July, the government adopted the Regulation on Integration of Refugees; however, this fell short of providing an effective mechanism for integration. According to UNHCR, the UN refugee agency, the Regulation failed to address the persistent problem of unco-operative municipalities or to propose measures to create more favourable conditions for integration in local communities. It also failed 103