Tutong Camp

Tutong Camp (Malay: Kem Tutong)^[1] is one of the military bases of the Royal Brunei Land Force (RBLF), and it is also home to the RBLF Second Battalion (2Bn).^[2] The RBLF have two garrisons of army and military police stationed in the Tutong District, namely the Tutong and Penanjong Camp, as well as a shooting range in Binturan.^[3]

Tutong Camp
Kem Tutong كيم توتوڠ
Pekan Tutong, Tutong in Brunei
Aerial view of the base in 2023
Tutong Camp Location in Brunei
Coordinates	4°49′39″N 114°40′12″E
Type	Military training base
Site information
Owner	Ministry of Defence
Operator	Royal Brunei Land Force
Condition	Operational
Website	land.mindef.gov.bn
Site history
Built	1976; 48 years ago (1976)
In use	1976–present
Garrison information
Garrison	RBLF Second Battalion

It can be noted that the camp was previously referred to as Royal Brunei Malay Regiment (RBMR) Camp, Tutong.^[4] In 2021, the population was 1,213.^[5]

History

The military base was completed by late April 1976, and later on 10 May 1976, the 2Bn officially moved into Tutong Camp after being temporarily based at Bolkiah Camp.^[2][6] A total of six blocks of flats within the camp were scheduled to be completed on 26 November 1978.^[4] On 2 September 1965, the 22nd Special Air Service (22 SAS) undergone a month long training period at the camp.^[7] The Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah presented the Royal Brunei Armed Forces with scented water during a ceremony at the Tutong Camp Parade Ground on 12 July 1994.^[8]

The Tutong District tug-of-war competition was held at the Tutong Camp Sports Complex for the competition's final match on 10 July 2005.^[9] A fire was put out on the 3rd floor of a barrack with no injuries reported on 21 March 2015.^[10] Floods caused by heavy rain on 7 December 2019, prompt the Tutong District Disaster Management Committee (DDMC) to identify both Tutong and Penanjong Camps to be used as a place of refuge.^[11] Delegation from the Ministry of Defence was participated in the Fardu Maghrib prayer at the camp's Surau Pengiran Ratna Indera on 14 April 2022.^[12]

Facilities

There are several facilities built within the base:

• Tutong Camp Sports Complex
• Tutong Camp Drill Square
• Tutong Camp Parade Ground
• Tutong Camp Primary School
• Tutong Camp Religious School^[13]
• Surau Pengiran Ratna Indera^[14]

References

1. Puak Tutong: sejarah dan perkembangan awal sosiobudaya : hasil projek 'Perkampungan Sejarah' di Mukim Pekan Tutong (in Malay). Pusat Sejarah Brunei, Kementerian Kebudayaan Belia dan Sukan. 2002. p. 1966.
2. "MINDEF - RBLF Organisation". MinDef.gov.bn. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
3. Tutong District. Department of Broadcasting and Information, Prime Minister's Office. 1988.
4. Report. Printed at the Brunei Press. 1977. p. 452.
5. "ANNEX B" (PDF). Department of Economic Planning & Statistics. October 2021.
6. Brunei (1976). Annual Report - State of Brunei. p. 361.
7. Pugsley, Christopher (2003). From emergency to confrontation: the New Zealand Armed Forces in Malaya and Borneo, 1949-1966. Oxford University Press. p. 274. ISBN 978-0-19-558453-0.
8. Brunei Darussalam. Broadcasting and Information Department, Prime Minister's Office. 1994. p. 137.
9. "Tutong tug-of-war finals". Sultanate.com. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
10. "Military barrack on fire at Tutong Camp". Borneo Post Online. 21 March 2015. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
11. Bakar, Rasidah Hj Abu (20 December 2019). "Tutong remains on alert for more flooding". The Scoop. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
12. "Ihya Ramadan eratkan silaturahim". Ihya Ramadan eratkan silaturahim. Media Permata Online. 15 April 2022. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
13. Brunei Darussalam Newsletter. Department of Information, Prime Minister's Office. 1994. p. 7.
14. "MINDEF AND RBAF SURAUS GET OFFICIAL NAMES" (PDF). www.mindef.gov.bn. 12 December 2016. p. 35. Retrieved 12 June 2024.

External links