Evening Standard urged to move awards from hotel after its owner the Sultan of Brunei called for gay people to be stoned

THE Evening Standard is being urged to move an awards ceremony from a hotel after its owner the Sultan of Brunei called for gay people to be stoned to death.


Celebrity columnist Rob Rinder – best known for the hit TV show Judge Rinder – writes for the paper and has urged readers to shun the Dorchester because it is owned by the Sultan of Brunei.

He said the country’s decision to stone gay people and cheating spouses to death is “state-sponsored evil”.

Mr Rinder wrote in his column: “The man who initiated these laws owns two hotels in our city: The Dorchester and 45 Park Lane (plus Coworth Park in Ascot).

BOYCOTT

“Boycotting them won’t touch the sides of the sultan’s bank account, but I would ask you to avoid them anyway.”

Another one of the paper’s columnists, Emily Sheffield, revealed she would refuse an invitation to any event at the Dorchester and other Brunei-owned establishments, reports The Guardian.

LGBT rights campaigner Peter Tatchell is also calling for the newspaper to cancel its May 17 booking.

Earlier this month, the new Sharia law came into force which allows gay people and cheating spouses to be stoned to death in Brunei.

Same-sex couples could also be whipped under the strict new Islamic laws in the tiny nation, which is on the island of Borneo in south-east Asia.

I would be very disappointed to see the Evening Standard – a paper that rightly celebrates the diversity and tolerance of our capital city – go ahead with this planned event.

But the move to make gay sex an offence punishable by stoning to death sparked international condemnation and outcry.

Protests have already been staged outside the Dorchester – which is owned by Brunei Investment Agency, a government-owned corporation founded by the Sultan of Brunei.

Celebrities including Sir Elton John and George Clooney have announced their support of the boycott.

The Shadow Foreign Secretary, Emily Thornberry, joined protesters outside the hotel earlier this month and is “fully supporting the boycott” because of Brunei's new "despicable and barbaric laws".

She said: “I would be very disappointed to see the Evening Standard – a paper that rightly celebrates the diversity and tolerance of our capital city – go ahead with this planned event.”

NEW VENUE

Mr Tatchell added: “I urge the Evening Standard to join the worldwide boycott of the Sultan’s hotels by cancelling its booking at the Dorchester and switching to a new venue.”

The Standard, which is edited by former chancellor George Osborne, said the Dorchester has been the venue for the awards for “many years” and added the booking was made a year ago.

A spokesman told The Guardian: “The Dorchester has been the venue of the New Homes awards for many years and May’s event was booked a year ago.

“We do of course continuously review locations for all our events and we will do that in this case for the future. As for our columnists, they give their personal views and neither they nor we would have it any other way.”

A Dorchester Collection spokesman added: “We understand people’s anger and frustration, but this is a political and religious issue that we don’t believe should be played out in our hotels and among our 3,630 employees.

“We’re deeply saddened by what’s happening right now and the impact it is having on our employees, guests, partners and suppliers in particular.”

The Sun Online has contacted the Standard and Dorchester for comment.








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