Los Angeles city officials joined with Hollywood on Tuesday in launching a boycott of two of the areas's most prestigious hotels owned by the Sultan of Brunei in protest of that country's adoption of a new penal code system based on Islamic law.
Mayor Eric Garcetti, City Attorney Mike Feuer and other officials said they will not attend any events at either the Beverly Hills or Bel Air hotels in protest of Brunei's adoption of laws based on Shariah criminal law that calls for stoning and flogging for adultery, abortions and same-sex relationships.
"I will not set foot in either the Hotel Bel Air or Beverly Hills Hotel until this issue is resolved," Feuer said. "The Brunei government's recent adoption of a barbaric penal code cannot stand. I call upon all the people of Los Angeles to join this boycott."
Garcetti, in a statement, said he agreed and would not go to either of the hotels.
"There's no place in this world for this kind of violence and hate, especially when directed by a government toward its citizens," Garcetti said.
Councilman Paul Koretz called for the city to condemn Brunei for the new laws and look at divesting itself of any investments in the country.
Councilman Mike Bonin, who represents the Westside of Los Angeles, has been boycotting the two facilities for the past month when the action was first announced by several groups.
On Monday, the Motion Picture & Television Fund announced it will refuse to do business with hotels owned by the Sultan of Brunei, Hassanal Bolkiah, or its government. The two hotels are part of the Dorchester Collection of high-end hotels owned by the sultan.
The sultan has called it a "great achievement" by his country in adopting the new laws.
"The decision to implement the (Shariah penal code) is not for fun but is to obey Allah's command as written in the Quran," the sultan said last week.
The boycott has drawn a growing list of organizations and individuals refusing to do business with any of the hotels owned by the sultan or government of Brunei in protest of the country's new Shariah criminal law that calls for the harsh punishment of adultery, abortions and same-sex relationships.
The Motion Picture & Television Fund says it won't hold its annual Night Before the Oscar party at the hotel as it has for many years.
"We cannot condone or tolerate these harsh and repressive laws and as a result support a business owned by the sultan of Brunei or a Brunei sovereign fund associated with the government of Brunei," the fund's directors said in a statement.
Others boycotting the hotels include Richard Branson and his Virgin Group, the Hollywood Reporter and the Feminist Majority Foundation.
City officials did not return calls for comment about the potential impact on workers at the two hotels. The Beverly Hills Hotel has an estimated 600 workers, while there are 275 employees at the Hotel Bel Air.
Christopher Cowdray, chief executive of the Dorchester Collection, released a statement that the boycott is misdirected.
"American companies across the board are funded by foreign investment, including sovereign wealth funds," Cowdray said.
The Dorchester Collection includes luxury hotels around the world.
Source : http://www.sbsun.com/government-and-politics/20140506/la-officials-boycott-brunei-owned-hotels-over-barbaric-penal-codes
