Zanzibar and Ramadan

Tourists to Zanzibar (an island that is part of the United Republic of Tanzania) have been advised that "it would be to their benefit if they refrain from eating and drinking in public during Ramadhan".

I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, I was often embarrassed by the poor behavior some Western tourists showed when they were in Tanzania. Many young European women dressed (and acted) like they were on their way to a pole-dancing contest. The overt sexual behavior that has decimated Western culture is not yet fully established in Tanzania, and many Tanzanians want to keep it that way. It would be nice if some Westerners would stop viewing Tanzanians as backwards, sexually-repressed morons who need to have their consciousnesses raised - even if it against their will.

On the other hand, I know from experience that this advisory against eating and drinking in public has less to do with respect for local customs than with the safely of Western tourists. While In Tanzania (I lived and worked on the mainland) I never had anyone warn me against public eating and drinking during Ramadan. But the islands are different - the population is 99% Muslim, and the guarantees of religious freedom are not always available to non-Muslims. Church buildings have been attacked in Zanzibar, and Christians live under a constant threat of oppression. My wife knows of cases where non-Muslims living in the islands have been dragged from restaurants - and even their homes - and beaten for eating during Ramadan.

In my opinion, this warning to tourists is the result of the growing influence of radical Muslims who have no interest in religious pluralism or tolerance. To the best of my knowledge, no Western tourists have ever been attacked for public eating and drinking. But given the fact that the islands seem well on their way to becoming a de facto Islamist state, that situation may not last.