Reflecting on the Meaning of "Mutual Respect" during Ramadan

In a society where a Muslim demographic majority and an economically (and somewhat demographically) significant non-Muslim minority coexist, the celebration of Ramadan is, not surprisingly, social contentious beneath a veil of obvious social harmony and mutual cultural respect.  Religious doctrine dictate that the Muslim not eat and drink from sunrise to sunset while toiling under the brutal hot weather of tropical Malaysia and going about their daily tasks of schooling and employment without any adjustments attributed to the fasting.

And what makes it more contentious here is the fact that while in a regular Islamic state where non-Muslim minorities are insignificant in number and can be hidden away in certain geographical or sector-specific areas (as in the case for the oil-rich countries of the Middle East), such is entirely not the case for Malaysia.  Even as the Muslim Malays suffer physically from their fasting, they also have to, simultaneously, suffer mentally from being forced to look at their Chinese and Indian compatriots enjoy their food and drinks without restraint.

Social norms and common sense dictate that it is simply impolite, and to put it more extremely, morally unacceptable, for someone to eat and drink in plain sight of others who are fasting.  Yet, given the fact that all aspects of life here, whether it be workplaces or commercial arrangements of any street in any urban area, is a mixture of Muslim and non-Muslim populations and establishments, to enforce even such simple norm is plainly impossible.  One cannot jut hide away the non-Muslims or force them to fast as well for the sake of reducing physical temptations for the Muslim majority.

To make the whole arrangement work (i.e. not allow the situation to descend into some sort of half-religious, half-ethnic confrontation that directly contribute to rise in race-based nationalism and Islamic fundamentalism) there needs to be significant mutual respect on both sides.  The Muslims must respect the rights of non-Muslims to continue their routines, and in exchange, the non-Muslims must proper display their respect for the pain Muslims go through in the month-long act of affirming their religious devotion.  Mutual concern is the basis for maintaining peace through respect.

Yet, beyond Ramadan, very much the same principle of mutual respect is needed to ensure productivity in a stable environment where everyone of all backgrounds are reasonably content with their own situations despite inevitable need for sacrifices.  Everyone has certain sensitivities that wish to be respected by others, but also find it difficult to point out directly in verbal or physical form for fear of appearing overtly self-righteous or even selfish in ways that are obviously not catering to pride and sensitivities of others.

As in the case of Ramadan-observing Muslims not wishing others to eat in front of them, not expressing their desires to be respected in such manners in explicit verbal forms do not mean that the sensitivities are not important or do not exist.  Instead, they expect others to have certain abilities to independently perceive those sensitivities, whether it be through independent observation or indirect learning fro others, so that they acquire the ability to detect those sensitivities and respect them properly over time.

However, especially in the case of foreigners residing and working in another country, who use their "foreignness" as justification to not respect the sensitivities of others, much to the dismay of others who are simply not in the socio-economic situation to point out just how inappropriate and demoralizing that lack of respect can build up to become over time.  They will tolerate it for sometime, expecting gradual improvement...but when the improvement does not come, some will be forced to express their displeasure in the most devastating ways.

The smaller-scale equivalent to Islamic militancy plays out on an everyday basis in situations that involve blissfully feigned ignorance of local sensitivities that play themselves along in the same line of logic as non-Muslims eating in front of Muslims during Ramadan.  The results are gradually accumulated hostility, conflicts, and quiet oppositions to the existing situation that will in the end bring down productivity and progress, whether it be for communities, firms, or nations, due to non-cooperation and protests that bring down stable hierarchies...