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Hotels told to obey Ramadan laws
21/09/2006 14:19 - (SA)
Zanzibar - A tourism commission in Zanzibar, Tanzania, has instructed all hotels and restaurants that primarily serve local people to strictly observe rules associated with the Islamic Holy month of Ramadan by not serving food or drink during daylight hours, said an official said Thursday.
Ali Khalid Mirza, a marketing officer with the Zanzibar Tourism Commission said international hotels had been exempted from the order.
But an Islamic group had called on the government to make sure no one was seen eating or drinking in public and that foreign tourists dressed conservatively while in public during Ramadan, due to begin this weekend.
Mirza said: "We asked all local hotels and restaurants to stop serving people during the day. This is in accordance with the moral and Islamic values of the people of Zanzibar."
Zanzibar '98% Muslim'
International tourism, though was a major source of income for the semi-autonomous region of Tanzania and Mizra, said hotels catering to foreign tourists would not be affected. Zanzibar was 98% Muslim.
He said: "Ramadan shouldn't be an obstacle to them. We welcome them in Zanzibar."
But the Association For Islamic Mobilisation and Propagation had issued a stern warning calling on the government to make sure that foreign tourists didn't show disrespect toward Islamic practices.
Abdullah Said, the group's secretary-general, said: "The authorities in Zanzibar must inform visitors entering Zanzibar to show respect during the month of Ramadan." He said tourists, especially women, must dress conservatively.
In the past, women who had dressed in short skirts or swimsuits inside Zanzibar's main city had been attacked. Two other Islamic groups had also called on tourists to respect Islamic practices, though none had threatened any direct action.
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