“In order to bring the religious and cultural significance of the Eid’l Fitr to the fore of national consciousness, it is necessary to declare Friday, 9 August 2013, as a regular holiday throughout the country,” Malacañang said through proclamation 629.
“To promote cultural understanding and integration, the entire Filipino nation should have the full opportunity to join their Muslim brothers and sisters in the observance and celebration of Eid’l Fitr,” it said.
President Benigno Aquino III signed the proclamation Thursday.
“By virtue of the powers vested in me by law, [I] hereby declare Friday, 9 August 2013, as a regular holiday throughout the country in observance of Eid’l Fitr (Feast of Ramadhan),” the proclamation read.
“The Eid’l Fitr Prayer shall be performed depending on the result of the moon-sighting activity on 7 August 2013,” it said.
According to the International Religious Freedom Report in 2010 of the United States Department of State, Muslims comprise an estimated five to nine percent of the population of the Philippines.