Issue No. 611
Front page
Previous issue
Site map
|
|
7 - 13 November 2002 Issue No. 611 Front page |
Current issue Previous issue Site map | |
| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 | Recommend this page | ||
Tuning in
Ramadan has begun against a backdrop of escalating regional tension. Gihan Shahine gauges the spirit of this year's Holy Month
It is almost sunset. The streets suddenly buzz with activity. Every one is excited, rushing home, buying up masses of foodstuffs. Motorists exhibit their car racing skills while pedestrians, in their turn, practice the aerobatic manoeuvres necessary to cross roads without being run over. The commotion suddenly ends as the iftar cannon announces the time has arrived to break the fast. Almost everybody is now at home, eating with family and friends.
But massacres of Palestinian civilians, and the ever present threat of a US-strike against Iraq, are casting a gloomy shadow on the spirit of Ramadan. And once again politics will be the first thing to gulp on at iftar, in the form of the few dates with which devout Muslims tend to break their fast according to Prophetic tradition. This year date traders, perhaps desperate to increase sales, have chosen to name the best and most expensive (priced between LE24-27 per kilo) of date brands after Saddam Hussein and Yasser Arafat. And as public wrath continues to mount against US policies in Iraq and the Israeli oppression, Bush and Sharon are the sobriquets attached to the worst and cheapest of dates, priced between LE1 and LE1.50 per kilo.
"I would never go for Sharon or Bush, not even if the dates were free," insists Fatma, a house-wife, laughing. "Enough has been done to Palestinian civilians and now a strike on Iraq is likely to kill more innocent people," Sabah explains. "If I had enough money I would have bought the Saddam dates to show solidarity with the Iraqi people, but they are too expensive for me."
Politics aside, inflation has made many people wary of being able to make ends meet in the Holy Month. Economic recession and the devaluation of the Egyptian pound has resulted in a reported 50 per cent slump in the import of yamish (Ramadan-must-have dried fruits), and an estimated 40 per cent rise in their prices. The prices of basic foods, like sugar, wheat, rice and poultry, have also shot up, and the government's LE4 billion stockpile of subsidised alternatives is unlikely to satisfy sky-high Ramadan demand.
"We had no choice but to cut down on yamish this year," says Sabah, as she searches for bargains in the market serving the poor district of Al-Salam. Sabah is not alone: many storekeepers report only window-shoppers, or those clearly searching for bargains and little else. Unzipping a small purse to recount her funds, Sabah reworks her list of priorities before deciding on yamish purchase.
Sabah is not worried, though: Ramadan, dubbed the month of bounty, is the time when zakat (alms) are paid in abundance and mercy tables dot many streets. And so do the flashing fawanis (lanterns), lending flamboyant colour to the streets. Although a Fatimid tradition, it is the Chinese-made fanous, many of which play tunes, that have cornered the market. The traditional, Egyptian-made counterparts sell less well.
Even here inflation has had an impact, with fawanis ranging between LE11 and LE24 this year.
"High prices aside, I think the fawanis have been too modernised," complains Reem, mother of four-year-old Assem. Reem will not go for the high-tech fads, the fanous which moves and plays popular songs, no matter how much dazzle it holds for children. But, since the local-made alternative is not "attractive enough" she compromises with a fanous playing Abdel-Motelleb's popular song "Ramadan Gana".
"The fanous is a Ramadan symbol," she says. "How can it have become so distorted?"
It is now 6:30pm. Worshippers, concerned with preparing for the next world by multiplying their pious works in this one, flock to the mosques, lining up for the taraweeh prayers (a sunna tradition).
Meanwhile, many families, having eaten too much food at iftar, are dozing in front of the TV, sifting through a mishmash of game shows and soap operas. And although it is too early to predict whether this year's TV productions will lull audiences into an after- iftar nap, at least four series are likely to keep many audiences glued to the screen. They include the controversial Fares Bela Gawwad (Horseman Without A Horse) (see p.3), In'am Mohamed Ali's Qassem Amin, the historic episodes of Zaman Emadeddin (Emadeddin's Time), Youssri El-Guindi's comedy, Goha Al-Masri (The Egyptian Goha), and Nour Al-Qamar (Moon Light), a drama by Nobel Laureate Naguib Mahfouz. So stay tuned.
|
 |
|
|||||||||||||||||
| ARCHIVES Letter from the Editor Editorial Board Subscription Advertise! |
WEEKLY ONLINE: weekly.ahram.org.eg Updated every Thursday at 20.00 GMT, 10 pm local time weeklyweb@ahram.org.eg |
 Al-Ahram Organisation |
