Ramadan: Season for high tempers [Archives:2004/785/Viewpoint]

Editor
Many foreigners living in Sana'a would tell you that Yemenis are kind and simple to deal with. And that is indeed a common feature seen throughout the country. But on some occasions, the simple and uncomplicated way of thinking backfires in the form of easily triggered temper.
'Warm blooded people' is another way to describe Yemeni men who get emotional very quickly, and in fact become violent when the moment of truth for them approaches.
Having said that, the rise in temper gets even higher during the month of Ramadan here in Yemen, particularly during the day.
One can try to justify the phenomenon of high temper among Yemeni males, particularly in the north by some research. It is undeniable that Yemenis have been living generation after generation in mountainous and in such difficult and harsh condition, giving them an edge in terms of their connection to natural and simple way of living, and hence, thinking.
This manifests itself even further when looking into the tribal composition of Yemenis. Dignity and weapons are usually associated in tribal and some rural areas throughout the country. One can then understand the many tribal warfare incidents that are reported in the press once in a while.
On the other hand, Yemenis can be very easily incited and that has been quite clear in the large number of demonstrations that took place before the war on Iraq, some of them chanting Saddam's name, and in demonstrations that turned violent sometimes against the US and UK.
But in Ramadan, this temper rises even quicker in many aspects.
A simple incident that happened to a friend of mine during a Ramadan day shows how severe this problem is. He was about to be killed by a laundry shop owner for a minor dispute on the fee. The owner simply took a steel pipe and was about to smash the head my friend, who luckily escaped with a broken arm.
Other incidents would be more devastating, sometimes leading to murder during this holy month. I have heard many stories of minibus drivers getting in quarrels with passengers for YR 5 (about 3 US cents). There was a bizarre case in which the passenger was killed at the spot.
In my opinion, there are a number of measures required to guarantee that the negative effect of such temper would be minimized.
The first is through education. It is important to let our children know of the importance of good morals and ethics. Specifically, religious education can tackle issues of moral behavior and controlling temper, especially as our religion stresses on the importance of patience and non-retaliation, similar to the Christian belief of 'turning the other cheek'.
Another important measure would be the proper enforcement of the law on all levels. Police forces should be readily available any time to ensure that they maintain law and order and deal with troublemakers who do not respect the law.
But one cannot but admit that by force only, people's attitudes would not change. Hence, it is essential that spiritual healing and awareness raising campaigns be applied to guarantee the maximum impact on men and women to understand what is wrong and right and make the appropriate judgments.
It is a pity that during the month of Ramadan, and specifically during daytime when Yemenis are fasting, tempers are not easily controlled. A personal advice is to not argue with someone heading home in his car in the last hour before sunset. This is in fact contrary to the objectives of fasting, which is to heal the soul and make people more peaceful and dedicated to each other.
Perhaps there is a lot of work expected before we can bring about peace of mind in those who lose their temper quickly. It would be a dream come true when we can guarantee that no quarrels would occur for a few hundred rials or murder because of a misunderstanding.
But we have a long way to go. But at least one should start somewhere!
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