Eating during Ramadan in Dhaka
I READ Dzof Azmi’s “Respect Ramadan, respect each other” column on May 1 with great interest (Contradictheory; online at bit.ly/star_respect). In relation to it, I would like to share an experience I had during a recent business trip to Dhaka.
Bangladesh has a population of more than 167,000,000, and 90% of the people are Muslim.
My colleagues and I were visiting some of our Bangladeshi customers for the first time after two years. On previous visits, we were always treated to cakes and tea or coffee as part of their warm hospitality. Of course, it was Ramadan when we were there this time so I didn’t expect anything – but they still served tea and coconut water. I was hesitant about drinking in front of people who were fasting but they insisted I go ahead and quench my thirst. I was really amazed at this courteous approach towards fasting.
When the lunch hour came around, they took me to a famous fried chicken fast food outlet. Again I tried to excuse myself, saying I had had a heavy breakfast and didn’t need lunch yet, that I would prefer to eat at my hotel anyway. But again they insisted that I should have my lunch, and eat it comfortably dine-in.
I was surprised to see the crowd; there were many Bangladeshi parents buying food for young children at the outlet. It was April 15, the day of the Bangladeshi New Year and a public holiday, and it looked like the children were being treated by their parents.
The adults didn’t eat but they had no problems accompanying their children for lunch. Similarly, even though they were not eating, my hosts kept me company as I ate my food although I told them I could manage on my own. It was just amazing how courteously they behaved.
Which is why I was taken aback when I read in Dzof’s column about how a local fast food outlet employee reacted negatively when some women in hijabs ate at the restaurant during Ramadan. I’m sure the women had a valid reason for not fasting, and I don’t think the employee needed to ask if they didn’t “feel bad for the customers that are fasting”.
I am not sure what I experienced in Dhaka was exceptional, whether people might act differently in other parts of the country. But, as Dzof wrote, it was interesting to see how different countries and cultures interpret fasting rules. Hopefully, here in Malaysia, common sense will prevail.