The Galle Face vendors have switched from selling achcharu and kites to proferring national flags and horns while the Green has transformed from an empty space to a thriving community with tents for those staying throughout, first aid stations, a library, legal aid desks, art installations, food and water distribution sites and more.

There is unity and harmony among the people of GotaGoGama and the Sunday Times team sees what would have been a rare event even a year ago as the sun begins to set throwing the sky overhead into a myriad of changing colours.

It is around 6 p.m. as people from different ethnicities begin laying cardboard mats and placing dates, water, milk packets, butter cake, buns and bottles of juice, all generously donated,  as they ready an area for the Muslims among them to break their fast, this being the Ramadan fasting period. It is done quickly and efficiently as breaking fast or having iftars at GotaGoGama is now second nature having been started on Day 1 of the protest itself.

Just before the Azan (call to prayer) rings out signifying that it is time for Maghrib which is the fourth daily prayer Muslims perform at sunset, there are announcements in Sinhala asking Muslims who need to break fast to join them at the closest breaking fast site.

“This is an announcement going out to our Muslim brothers and sisters who can hear this message. We have prepared for you to come break fast so please come join us in front of the Presidential Secretariat barricade”. There are two iftar stations; one  opposite the Presidential Secretariat barricade and the other at the protest site lawn.

From young to old, those fasting sit together and break fast first with a date and then a sip of water as is tradition. “We get everything prepared and keep so those who are fasting simply need to come and break their fast. Sri Lanka has been a united country but only divided by either a political party or outside forces; through this, we can see the unity among the people.. Of a time that we used to be like this and how we will be in the future henceforth,” shares 30-year-old Dhaniz Ali from Kurunegala who had been at GotaGo Gama for the last three weeks.

Ramadan began the first week of April and it entails Muslims not having a drop of water or a bite of food from dawn to sunset for a month until Eid-Ul-Fitr. A common question asked is why people fast? Muslims believe it to be a chance to get closer to God, become more compassionate to those in need and be more self-disciplined.

It is still unbearably hot despite the sea breeze and we see the fatigue that comes with protesting as 47-year-old Gnei Sharana Noor Jamin who is there with her husband and three daughters aged 18, 15 and 12 years, tells us that although fasting during Ramadan is important, right now coming to GotaGoGama and joining others at the protest is equally important to them.

“People are suffering and struggling yet there is so much peace and togetherness here. Right after the Easter attacks, I was afraid to go outside as a hijabi. We couldn’t even walk on the road without people giving us strange looks. We were scared and uncomfortable but here at GotaGoGama there is no fear for my own or my children’s safety,” she says adding that she and her family try to come every other day and they pray for a better future for the country.

Constantly on the move, Afzal Hussain is one of the youth coordinators helping with distributing food and other necessities at GotaGoGama. “Our iftars are not just for Muslims but for everyone to join in and also learn what exactly is happening. Slowly I can see people learn why Muslims fast, why they pray five times a day and what they pray for and more. We also do a special prayer calling for justice for our country,” he says.

Having been here throughout the protest, Afzal says that some of his co-coordinators and others who have been spending the night here have also witnessed them having Sahr which is the meal Muslims have at dawn to start their daily fast. “They come and ask me, ‘Afzal why are we making and having rice so early in the morning’ but it’s all in good humour as they also want to make sure we begin our fasts properly,” he says.

“I think Ramadan is the time of the year when we all come together with our family. This year it’s been really amazing to see everybody together united–both Muslims and non-Muslims alike. When you’re fasting, protesting is kind of tiring but when you’re breaking fast, and you see everybody else who has been there with you sharing the same struggle, not just the struggle of fasting, but the struggle of our country being robbed, our homes not having electricity….It’s just such a moment where you feel together and you feel united,” shares Muneera Dawoodbhoy who has experienced the iftars set up both at GotaGoGama and at Independence Square,

This has brought communities together as she has learnt about Avurudu customs and traditions that she never knew of while she herself shared with her friends the beauty of Islam, its prayers and customs. It has been an amazing experience for her and she hopes even when all of this is over and the change needed is made, the unity will remain.

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