The Sultanate of Brunei, a small and rich oil state in northern Borneo, began 10 days of celebrations on Thursday for the wedding of Prince Abdul Mateen, 32, until then one of Asia's most prominent bachelors.
An Islamic wedding ceremony was held on Thursday at a golden-domed mosque in the capital Bandar Seri Begawan between the prince and Yang Mulia Anisha Rosnah, a 29-year-old citizen and granddaughter of an adviser to the sultan.
The young prince wore a traditional white outfit with diamond-shaped patterns and matching traditional headdress and was driven to the mosque in a luxurious car.
AFP
He then sat on a raised yellow cushion in front of an imam, who presided over the men-only ceremony in the presence of the sultan and other relatives and guests. Then he approached his father and kissed his hand.
Mateen is the 10th child of Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, 77, one of the world's longest-serving rulers, who has led the monarchy since his father's abdication in 1967.
AFP
The Sultan was once the richest man in the world and ruled this state until 1984 under British protectorate, in which Sharia has been in force since 2019.
The climax of the royal wedding celebrations is planned for Sunday with a grand ceremony in the vast 1,788-room palace and a procession through the city.
Members of the world's major royal families as well as political leaders are expected to attend.
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“It's like a fairy tale,” Syahida Wafa Mohamed Shah, 22, a university student, told AFP near the Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque where the wedding is being celebrated.
Many residents of the small, 5,700-square-kilometer state plan to attend Sunday's procession, when the royal couple will salute from a horse-drawn carriage.
“It looks like a scene from a movie,” commented Nazatul Izzati Saifulrizal, 19, for his part.
Immeasurable wealth
The splendor of this connection underlines the enormous wealth of this country of 450,000 people, whose prosperity rests almost entirely on its enormous oil reserves, which have been exploited since the 1930s.
According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), annual GDP per capita is 32,700 euros and is among the highest in the world. But Brunei faces major challenges in diversifying its economy as oil prices continue to fluctuate and its reserves dwindle.
The Sultan was long considered the richest man in the world, fueling his legend with his palace, said to be one of the largest in the world, and a large collection of luxury cars.
Brunei is a kingdom that is over a millennium old and lies on a strip of land on the northern edge of the island of Borneo in Southeast Asia. The area was long influenced by Buddhism and Hinduism and converted to Islam in the 14th century.
In 2019, this absolute monarchy became the first country in Southeast Asia to adopt a Sharia-based criminal code.
Compared to Prince Harry
Although it is unlikely that Prince Abdul Mateen will ever ascend the throne, his youthful looks and large social media following have made him one of the most recognizable members of the royal family.
As a helicopter pilot in his country's air force, he was often featured in the media with Prince Harry, the son of King Charles III. of the United Kingdom.
A graduate of Britain's prestigious Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, Mateen is also a renowned polo player who represented his country at the 2019 Southeast Asian Games.
In recent years he has played an increasingly important role in international diplomacy, accompanying his father to the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II and the coronation of Charles III last May. and Queen Camilla.