Yesterday's NY Times had an article about Libyans fleeing the violence in their country, and finding shelter across the border in Tunisia. Residents of the town of Tataouine have opened their homes to total strangers, even moving into less comfortable parts of the house and giving the best rooms to the refugees. (See http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/29/world/africa/29refugees.html?scp=2&sq=Tunisia&st=cse.)
One of the homeowners "described his gesture as a matter of obligation and pride. 'This is how it is, these are our customs,' he said. 'If there is something to eat, we will eat it together. If there is nothing to eat, we will have nothing together.'"
I am pleased but not surprised. These customs arose from the struggle for survival in the desert. Any stranger might claim three days of hospitality, simply by putting a hand on the guy ropes of your tent, and if you were in trouble, you could claim it at another encampment. The three days were "greeting, eating, and talking." As host, you were expected to feed the stranger as well as your means allowed, even if your own family went hungry. You couldn't ask his business until the third day (it was almost always a him). And if pursuers came after him, you were expected to defend him with your life. It was a matter of honor. Often that hospitality extended well beyond the initial three days.
This tradition originated in the pre-Islamic Middle East and spread via Islam to North Africa, Central Asia, and east to Indonesia. It explains why the Afghans refused to turn Osama bin Laden over to the Americans, even though their country suffered terribly for it.
This is no doubt why the Afghans refused to turn Osama bin Laden over to his American pursuers. He was a guest, and had to be defended
No comments:
Post a Comment