Commentary by Mustafa K. Anuar.

RECENTLY, the Malaysian Chinese Muslim Association appealed to parents, teachers and school authorities for respect, tolerance and understanding in the context of Ramadan, where eating during recess has become an issue.

The controversy follows a circular circulated by a public primary school in Kuala Lumpur to parents pertaining to rules on fasting at the school, which has evoked anxiety among non-Muslim parents.

The circular states that the school canteen will be closed during Ramadan “to train Muslim pupils to fast and non-Muslim pupils to respect those who are fasting”.

Pupils who are not fasting should see to it that they have their meals before coming to school as they are not allowed to eat at school or to openly bring any drinking water to school.

When pressed for clarification, the school administration said the circular is meant for only Muslims, which is debatable as some of the rules imposed can be applied to Muslims and non-Muslims alike.

Take the ruling about not eating at school and bringing drinking water to school, for instance. Upon violation, both Muslim (who do not fast) and non-Muslim pupils are culpable.

Question is: why are they not allowed to eat and drink, especially non-Muslims who are not obligated to fast?

Malaysian Chinese Muslim Association secretary Nurul Nadhirah Liew said respect is a two-way process.

While non-Muslims are expected to respect the religious practices of their Muslim counterparts, the latter is also expected to respect (but not believe in) those of the former.

Such a notion of respect is crucial to be instilled, especially at a young age, so pupils are not nurtured to become arrogant, selfish and insensitive to the cultural obligations of others.

While it is appreciated that the said school has designated certain classrooms for those who do not fast to eat and drink, such isolation may, nonetheless, have side-effects.

Such isolationism does not represent the real world, where Muslims and non-Muslims interact with each other even during Ramadan, with one party eating and drinking, among other things, while the other does not.

In the old days, some Muslim pupils would even strike a conversation with non-Muslim friends who were eating at the canteen, without the former tempted to break their fast.

While few Muslim pupils might have eaten the proverbial forbidden fruit along the way, they eventually learned to withstand the trials and tribulations. It is part of learning to be practising believers.

If anything, such interaction at the canteen tests the faith and resolve of Muslims. After all, are they not expected to be tested for their inner strength by temptation without having an external force to ensure strict compliance?

Abstinence should come from within and be exercised in the face of social realities. Will a Muslim worker in a fast-food outlet, for instance, succumb to temptation while serving food to customers?

It is also in this context that non-Muslim pupils get to better know about the fasting obligation of their friends. This is inclusivity at its best.

Fasting should not cause hardship or inconvenience to non-Muslims, particularly in a diverse society such as ours.

Respect should be earned and understanding, mutual. Ramadan is an ideal time for these to be observed. – April 10, 2022.