As millions of Muslims across the world pass the halfway point in their month of compulsory fasting, in one Muslim country activists are fighting for what they say is their right not to fast during Ramadan.
In Tunisia, the ‘Fater’ (meaning ‘breakfasted’ or ‘not fasting’) movement has been pushing for the “freedom of non-fasters to lead a normal life” since 2013.
Founded with the purpose of “sharing tips to find a cafe or a restaurant open during the month of Ramadan for those who are not fasting for various reasons”, the collective has this year gone one step further.
On Sunday, the Tunisian capital witnessed a first-of-its-kind demonstration for the right to eat, drink and smoke in public during the Islamic month of fasting.
Protesting under the slogan “Mouchbessif” (literally ‘not by the sword’, or ‘not against my will’, in Tunisian Arabic), dozens of demonstrators held a sit-in outside Tunis’ tourist office.
They held signs demanding freedom of belief and calling for an end to the punishment of those who do not fast during Ramadan. One man was photographed smoking while holding a banner asking “why does it bother you if you fast and I eat?”
Manifestation des non-jeûneurs #mouchbessif à l'avenue Habib Bourguibahttps://t.co/oHtviAjKpB pic.twitter.com/6XIrH87h7P
— BusinessNews.com.tn (@BusinessNews_tn) June 11, 2017
Demonstration of non-fasters [of the] #MouchBessif [campaign] on Habib Bourguiba Avenue (One placard reads “we are the change”, another “Tunisia is secular”)
#Mouch_Bessif : Les non-jeûneurs se manifestent à #Tunis#Religiousliberty #Liberty #Manifestation #activist #blogger #tunisia #tunisie pic.twitter.com/q7c5MC3Ueh
— Adel Azouni (@adelazouni) June 11, 2017
Non-fasters demonstrate in Tunis (Signs read “individual freedoms are rights, not privileges” and “let the non-faster be, arrest the terrorist (instead)”)
The movement was galvanized into action earlier in June when four Tunisian men were imprisoned for a month after eating and smoking in a park in the northern coastal town of Bizerte.
While Tunisia is unusual among Muslim nations in that it does not criminalize refusing to publicly observe the fast, Tunisians can still be prosecuted for “public indecency”.
This, despite the 2014 constitution enshrining freedom of belief and conscience. In fact, while the state is constitutionally obliged to promote “moderation and tolerance”, it is also held to be the “guardian of religion”.
According to the Fater movement, this means that Islamic leaders are often left unchecked as they attempt to impose religious observance, and cafes that open can face random closures by the authorities.
On Tuesday night, co-founder of Fater, Karim Benabdallah, spoke on Deutsche Welle’s Arabic language channel.
Benabdallah described to debate show “Shabab talk” how the collective was started in response to a preacher’s attempt to shame those who frequent cafes during daylight hours.
The imam Sheikh Adel al-Almi has for three years filmed customers in those few cafes and restaurants which chose to remain open, with the purpose of pressuring Tunisians into fasting.
He has described cafes serving food and drink during Ramadan as a “contravention of Sharia (Islamic law)” and a “desecration of the month”.
Nonetheless, Al-Almi’s activities have sparked outrage among some in the North African country, who have expressed their anger using the “Mouch Bessif” hashtag.
Vive la Tunisie libre! #MouchBessif pic.twitter.com/xy1O371Eze
— Alice Paghera (@PagheraAlice) June 13, 2017
Long live free Tunisia! (the graffiti in the picture reads: “Long live Tunisia, free and democratic!”
There is no law in Tunisia preventing businesses from serving customers during the “holy month”. Nonetheless, the majority in the 99 percent Sunni Muslim nation chose to shut between sunrise and sunset for those four weeks.
They may be disastisfied, but non-fasters in Tunisia benefit from some of the greatest freedoms in the Arab world. Many other Muslim-majority countries impose even stricter penalties for those caught eating in public during Ramadan.
Tunisia’s neighbor Morocco imprisons non-fasters for up to six months. The UAE fines public eaters nearly 550 dollars and jails them for a month, while in Qatar the punishment is 800 dollars and three months in prison. In Saudi Arabia, non-respect of the fast can even result in being sentenced to lashes.
As for Tunisia, Benabdallah says that “[‘Fater’ movement’s] goal is clear: [we want] the religious leaders and the authorities to stop pursuing those who do not fast in public, as they are doing now, without any clear justification from the law.”
“Non-fasters have the right to a normal life during Ramadan.”
