Far-Right Vox Party Pushes to Remove Muslim Holiday from Ceuta’s Work Calendar

The Vox party has launched a new battle against the Muslims of Ceuta. It is demanding the removal of Eid al-Adha, scheduled for July 9, from the 2022 work calendar, and its replacement with the celebration of Saint Daniel on October 10, reports El Confidencial. For Kissy Chandiramani, economic advisor and local deputy of the Popular Party (PP), Vox’s proposal aims to "have a celebration that does not belong to our tradition or our culture, to a celebration that finds an indisputable framework in Western culture and that of Ceuta." "The PP has been subjecting Ceuta to ’Moroccanization’ for 20 years," tweeted Teresa Lopez, Vox deputy in Congress, in reaction to Chandiramani’s statement.

Eid al-Adha has been included in the work calendars of Ceuta and Melilla for about ten years, with the agreement of all political forces, except Vox which was not representative enough. Muslims now represent more than half of Ceuta’s population, estimated at 85,000 inhabitants.

To read: Vox Criticizes Ceuta Government for Rescheduling Meeting Around Moroccan Eid al-Adha Date

The PSOE of Ceuta and the Movement for Dignity and Citizenship (MDyC), a formation composed mainly of Muslims and whose spokesperson is Fatima Hamed, do not want to be satisfied with the integration of Eid al-Adha into the work calendar of the city. They also want to introduce the second major important Islamic holiday, Eid al-Fitr (Ramadan). "We are not going to adopt a work calendar with public holidays that do not respond to all the sensitivities and realities of the population," said Manuel Hernandez, general secretary of the PSOE of Ceuta, stressing that the calendar must "reflect the cultural diversity of our city without favoring one community over another."

The PSOE and MDyC propose to give up the fact that Monday, December 26, 2022, the day after Christmas, be a public holiday in order to allow the insertion of Eid al-Fitr, celebrated on May 2, into the work calendar of Ceuta. The plenary session of the Ceuta Assembly will vote on this work calendar next week, which the Council must also send to the Ministry of Labor.