Having some days off during `Eids to celebrate the occasions with the family is something Dutch Muslim students have never experienced.
Despite making up a substantial population, they are usually overlooked and their holidays are sidelined.
This is a situation the Muslim Students Union in the schools of the Gilder Land city, Amsterdam, are trying to change, Shia Waves reported.
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Areej Naina, the head of the union called on the government to declare `Eid Al-Fitr as a “school holiday” in the country, as part of the region’s efforts to promote diversity and integration within society.
“The blessed `Eid Al-Fitr is one of the holiest Islamic holidays, which we celebrate after the end of the blessed month of fasting,” she said during a meeting organized by the institute.
`Eid Al-Fitr is one of the two most important Islamic celebrations, together with `Eid Al-Adha, or “Feast of Sacrifice”.
The Islamic Hijri Calendar is a lunar one, thus the observance of `Eid Al-Fitr revolves throughout the seasons.
Islam is the second-largest religion in the Netherlands as 4% of the population follow the faith according to 2010–11 estimates.
Most reside in the nation’s four major cities, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague, and Utrecht.