• CHERYL G. CRUZ
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. declared April 1, a Tuesday, as a regular holiday throughout the country in observance of Eid’l Fitr, or Feast of Ramadhan.
Proclamation 839, issued March 20 and signed by Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, states that the celebration aims “to bring the religious and cultural significance of Eid’l Fitr to the fore of national consciousness.”
This will also “allow the entire Filipino nation to join their Muslim brothers and sisters in peace and harmony in the observance and celebration of Eid’l Fitr,” it added.
The declaration was made following the recommendation of the National Commission on Muslim Filipinos.
Eid’l Fitr is one of the two most important Islamic celebrations, and is observed by the Muslim community three days after the month-long Ramadan fasting.
The other important celebration, Eid al-Adha, or the Feast of the Sacrifice, is celebrated on the 10th day of the last month of the Islamic calendar and commemorates the willingness of Ibrahim (Abraham) to sacrifice his son to God.
Muslim Filipinos comprise about six percent of the population, the Philippine News Agency reported, adding that Eid’l Fitr was established as a regular holiday through Republic Act 9177 to honor the country’s Islamic heritage.
The holiday is determined by the use of the lunar-based Islamic calendar through the sighting of the crescent moon in the Islamic month of Shawwal, it added. | CGC
