Ramadan festival a different experience this year for Kais
As members of the Muslim faith across Wexford and the globe celebrated the end of Ramadan with the Eid festivities at the weekend, asylum seekers at the Courtown Hotel said that this year’s festival was something quite different.
For many, it was their first Ramadan in Ireland, but for all it was the first time to experience it during the Covid-19 restrictions.
Resident at the Courtown Hotel Kais Khachi said that this year’s prayers were dominated by the coronavirus also.
‘Ramadan is all about spiritual things and it’s different because it’s not as big, people are not gathering. We can’t go to the Mosque at the moment, the one in Gorey is small but it’s closed down because of coronavirus. So it’s kind of different, not only just because we’re in Ireland but because of coronavirus, people are preparing the meals at certain times and not the usual times.
‘But Ramadan is not only about fasting from food but it’s also about being a good person, being kind and calm. We fast from food but also fast from doing something bad to anyone or gossiping, talking badly about someone. It’s about being a good person which reflects the message’.
At the end of the Ramadan fast, Muslims like Kais celebrate with Eid, which is usually celebrated as a large gathering.
‘It’s something similar to Christmas or Easter, when you break your fasting and it’s a three-day holiday in our country. It’s about the people celebrating and enjoying the end of this month. The parents give the kids some gifts or sometimes money, it’s all about making them happy. The grown-ups sometimes might give gifts to each other as it’s about sharing the happiness.
‘Now we are all praying now to get rid of this virus and get our asylum decisions because we are waiting for our decisions from the National Protection Office. We are praying to get any feedback from them so we can get a decision, to start the whole process of moving out of direct provision,’ he said.
Kais said that hearing about difficulties in relation to Covid-19 in other direct provision and emergency accommodation centres causes concerns for him and other residents in Courtown, but he feels safe where he is.
‘The management here, they are trying to do the best they can to keep us safe. It’s safe at the moment because no one is going out of the centre but who knows, maybe someone might go to Dublin or to any of the affected areas and come back and the entire place would be affected by it.
‘It happened in other centres in Ireland so it’s not safe, not because of the place itself, as I said we feel safe here, but it’s not safe in general. The situation of Covid-19 in general is not safe, so it’s kind of challenging to keep everything as normal,’ he said.
Across Wexford, Muslims decorated their living quarters with items to mark Ramadan such as colourful paper lanterns, which date back to ancient Egypt.
Reem Abubakr, a 17-year-old Creagh College student who lives in the Courtown Hotel with her family, made some of these lanterns marking her first year to celebrate Ramadan in Ireland.
‘Ramadan is the ninth month in the Hijri calendar and during this month, Muslims have to fast from sunrise to sunset to sympathize with the poor, be thankful to God for his blessings and to seek forgiveness. During fasting, Muslims keep themselves busy by reading the entire
Quran for the whole month, praying more often, increasing charity and helping their family with preparing for Iftar, which is the first meal Muslims have at the sunset.
‘Muslims during this time try to stop listening to music, cursing, and other inappropriate activities to dedicate more time to God. Ramadan is a great month for Muslims to spend more time with their families since a lot of families can’t eat together due to being busy and etc.
‘Another thing Muslims do in Ramadan is praying Taraweeh. Taraweeh is a special prayer that is done during the night. Muslims can pray twice or ten times at that time and this is considered a perfect opportunity to be closer to God as these prayers are only done during Ramadan.
‘If you’re wondering how you can help your Muslim friends during Ramadan, it’s best to be aware of our practices and be understanding towards them by reading more about it to understand that sometimes we won’t be as energetic due to lack of food, drink and sleep during the day but don’t really worry about eating in front of us or hiding your food,’ she said.