Thousands of people yesterday gathered at Daan Forest Park in Taipei for an Eid al-Fitr celebration marking the end of Ramadan, filled with food and activities.
The annual event featured performances, workshops and a halal bazaar with about 40 booths offering everything from food and Muslim-themed merchandise to public service information.
One of the attendees enjoying halal food was Yoni, an Indonesian caregiver who attended with an elderly man, surnamed Tung (董), whom she has cared for over the past seven years.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
“He likes shawarma,” Yoni, 52, said on why she brought Tung to the event for a third year in a row.
Grateful that Taipei has put together the event for the Muslim community for years, Yoni said being Muslim in Taiwan was “not particularly difficult.”
For example, her employer respected her wish to fast during Ramadan despite the physical demands of her job, she said.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
Sharing a similar view was Ahmed Salahelden, an Egyptian student who has attended the event almost every year since arriving in Taiwan five years ago to pursue a doctorate at National Taiwan University.
Prior to arriving in Taiwan, he did not find much information about whether it was a Muslim-friendly nation, but after arriving, he found that Muslims can practice “all their traditions and customs here without any problems,” he said.
While he did not find any kind of discrimination based on his religious beliefs, the 35-year-old said there was still room for improvement.
Prayer rooms have been provided at academic institutions and major MRT stations over the years, but more such spaces are needed, he said.
While Salahelden praised Taiwan as “extremely Muslim-friendly,” Taiwanese participant Esther Liao said that some Taiwanese still treat “people wearing headscarves” and “blonde foreigners” differently.
Liao, in her late 20s, said Taiwanese her age tended to approach “those who were clearly European or American,” hoping to strike up a conversation, make friends or practice their English.
“However, when they see Muslims, they do not approach them,” said Liao, who studied Arabic and Arab culture at a university in Taiwan and spent a year as an exchange student in the Middle East.
Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) said during the opening of the event that it reflected Taipei’s identity as “a diverse, inclusive and welcoming city,” and that “regardless of ethnicity, culture or national borders, we are all one family.”
About 300,000 Muslims from more than 40 countries live in Taiwan, the majority of whom are Indonesian foreign workers, Taipei Grand Mosque chairman Yaser Cheng (鄭泰祥) said.
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