Taipei: A large number of predominantly Indonesian Muslims gathered in the Daan Forest Park in Taipei Sunday for the annual Eid al-Fitr event held by the Taipei City government, marking the occasion with Halal food, music, and culture.
According to Focus Taiwan, Ria, an attendee from Indonesia, shared her excitement about the event, which she learned about online. She was particularly eager to visit the Halal food stands at a bazaar set up for the occasion, especially those offering Indonesian food, which she missed. Ria, a public health PhD student at National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University's (NYCU) Taipei campus, praised Taiwan for its Muslim-friendly environment, noting Family Mart's designated sections for Halal-certified food and the abundance of Halal restaurants and prayer rooms. On her campus, where the number of Muslim students is on the rise, a prayer room is frequently used by Muslim students. Ria recalled how "accommodating" NYCU seemed when she enrolled.
Meanwhile, on a nearby lawn, a few dozen young Indonesians were picnicking and dancing to music from their home country. Nobel, a member of the group, mentioned that they were students at National Taiwan University, which currently hosts around 400 Indonesian students. Restu, another participant, explained that they gathered to engage in "halal-bihalal," a practice where Indonesian Muslims seek forgiveness from one another for any mistakes made over the past year, typically observed during the month following Ramadan. Since they are far from home, they have honored this tradition among friends for the fourth year at the city government's Eid al-Fitr event.
The event featured stands selling food and drinks, as well as cultural stands set up by Taiwanese and Indonesians, juxtaposing Taiwanese and Indonesian cultures. These included displays of handmade Indonesian masks and puppets alongside a stand introducing Pat ka-tsi²ng, a traditional Taiwanese religious dance believed to rid the human realm of pandemics, demons, and evil spirits. Gema Angklung, a band featuring a traditional Indonesian percussion instrument, performed an instrumental rendition of "Tian Mi Mi" by the late Taiwanese songstress Teresa Teng.
A staffer from the Taipei City Foreign and Disabled Labor Office, which organized the cultural events, emphasized that these activities were meant to promote mutual understanding between Taiwanese and Indonesians. Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an appeared at the event, expressing gratitude to the Muslims for choosing to live and work in Taipei, describing the city as passionate, friendly, inclusive, and diverse.
Indonesia's representative to Taiwan, Arif Sulistiyo, noted that there are around 35,000 Indonesians in Taipei, over 90 percent of whom are Muslims. He expressed his appreciation for the event, seeing Indonesian caregivers attending with the seniors under their care and promised continued collaboration with the Taipei City government to hold what he described as the largest Eid event in Taiwan.