Issues of the day: Saudi warns non-Muslims: Respect Ramadhan, or else

Paper Edition | Page: 8

July 20, online

Saudi authorities are warning non-Muslim expatriates against eating, drinking or smoking in public during Ramadhan — the month-long sunrise-to-sunset fast — or face expulsion.

The Interior Ministry in the oil-rich kingdom is calling on non-Muslims to “show consideration for the feelings of Muslims” and to “preserve the sacred Islamic rituals”.

Otherwise, a statement says, Saudi authorities will cancel violators’ work contracts and expel them.

The warning came on Friday, the first day of the Ramadhan observance.

In addition to Saudi Arabia’s 19 million citizens, there are nearly 8 million Asian workers in the country, as well as hundreds of thousands of other foreign expatriates from around the globe, according to government figures.

Saudi Arabia, the ultraconservative Sunni kingdom, is home to Islam’s holiest sites. It enforces a strict interpretation of the religion.

Your comments:

My best friends happen to be Muslims. I respect their ideals, which incidentally they don’t brandish ostentatiously.

This is in direct contrast to Islamic “nutcase” states, which have no respect for those of other faiths.
The hypocrisy relies on the cynical manipulation and misuse of the Koran, their holy book, as a mind-control weapon.

They want nothing more than to keep their populations uneducated, credulous, superstitious and docile.

Speaking for myself, Saudis will get respect when they earn it; no holding of breath here. When they start accepting people of other faiths and have churches built, maybe then things will improve.

To reiterate, respect is earned, not obtained through fear, intimidation, or bribery.

Maurice Gold

So they can’t fast unless everybody else does?

Hansard Widrick

We should set rules in Muslim countries and mock the kuffar in a sensible way so they can’t raise their voices.

They do the same to us and we make a joke of ourselves. We should be as clever as they are.

Mohammad

Islam is a religion that signifies peace and it should be respected. I like what the Saudi government has done

Issa Ahmed