From a Tunisian friend, on why he will not be returning home this season:
It would have been a great pleasure to return, but unfortunately I decided not to spend my vacations there this year.
I don’t like to be in Tunisia during the Ramadan period. It used to be welcoming and tolerant: cafés and restaurants used to be open and would welcome anyone. The situation has changed over the last three years; it has become more difficult for people like me who do not fast to find a place to go during the day and to my despair, people have become less tolerant vis-à-vis those who are Tunisians and who do not fast.
One of my friends told me that the situation has become worse this year.
I left Tunis shortly before Ramadan so I am not sure how tangible the change is, but I do wonder whether it is a region-wide phenomena and what the catalysts could be.
Has Ramadan become more intense in previously liberal countries? Is the disdain for non-fasting increasing, or does a nonchalance pervade?
Ponder, ponder.
On another note, Nascity has a rather delightful visual guide to Ramadan, here.
U knw! The very fact that these questions arise is troubling -to me-
H.
Really, Haitham, how so?
I’m spending Ramadan in Jordan for the first time and I’ve noticed that the amount of people who do fast is decreasing in a country that is generally quite religious. Reading this makes me wonder if the opposite is happening in previously more conservative countries…
I hear you. I live in Jakarta, Indonesia, and have a look at this link http://parvita.wordpress.com/2007/09/28/funny-things-you-find-during-ramadhan-in-indonesia/. I don’t know how it is in Tunisia but people in Indonesia can also be judging towards those who don’t fast, especially in cities or towns where they try to practice the sharia.