How difficult is it to find and buy alcohol in different Muslim countries. If I wanted to buy a bottle of Jack in Iran, Kuwait or Saudi Arabia would it be like buying drugs in the rest of the non Muslim world? I’m asking about availability and penalties.
When I was in Turkey (Izmir) back in 1999-2000 you could find beer everywhere (Efes Pilsen mostly but other brands too), although I think there was some restriction where you couldn’t buy it at certain times of the day. And I am sure there were hard liquor stores all over the place as well. Of course Turkey is by far the most liberal Muslim country.
Turkey is secular, so technically it’s not a Muslim country, even though Islam is the dominant religion.
In most of the Arab states, Westerners tend to live in fairly specific areas- either on military bases, or in districts more or less set aside for them. The people who live in the latter areas tend to be oil company employees, or other technical types doing government work, like German roadbuilders.
On military bases, alcohol prohibitions aren’t really enforced except for native staff, and alcohol laws tend to be either loosely enforced or not enforced at all in the Western neighborhoods.
In Oman, for example, the Sultan’s Armed Forces (SAFO) employ lots of British and American officers, either on secondment from their home militaries, or directly contracted, who live on military bases. On the bases, the alcohol laws don’t apply; officers’ messes serve alcohol, and you can possess as much as you like in your on-base home.
There are stores which cater more or less exclusively to Westerners- the French supermarket chain Prisunic has several stores in Oman- and Westerners can buy alcohol there. I don’t think Saudi Arabia allows alcohol to be sold openly like that, though. I know Abu Dhabi and Dubai (and presumably the other Emirates) do.
There are a couple of caveats; you can’t drink during Ramadan, whether or not you’re a Muslim.
I’ve had no problems getting alcohol in Turkey, Bosnia, or Albania. I went to this nightclub in Albania that was ca-RAZY, in fact.
I think you’re more likely to get different answers from people who’ve spent time in the gulf states.
Alcohol is not illegal in Iraq. There are liquor stores run by non-Muslims. Those who run liquor stores, and those seen buying it, do sometimes face violence from fundamentalists, but this is becoming less of a problem as security in general improves.
I understand that in Iraq, liquor stores are fairly common (many run by Iraq’s Christian minorities).
I think that in Iran however, possession of alcohol is a pretty serious crime…
Each country is going to have it’s own set of laws, so its pretty tough to generalize this to all Islamic nations.
Egypt is a Muslim country though it technically has a secular government. Alcohol is available in bars. I have never tried to find a liquor store, though.
Alcohol can’t be bought publicly in Saudi Arabia though stories abound of alcohol-soaked parties by the royal family. One doctor who worked on an Aramco compound there told me that they could not import alcohol to their compound but they were allowed to have a still. **Paul in Saudi **may show up to share his experiences there.
Raki is the (unofficial) national drink of Turkey. People drink it openly. Beer is served in hotels and bars in Egypt, although the local brand (Stella) is ghastly stuff without much quality control being exercised. Saudis and other Muslims who like their drink show up in Cairo by the planeload during Ramadan.
I reckon Indonesia might beat it for that title. Alcohol is available everywhere with no hassles. the UAE states are also pretty liberal for Alcohol sales I believe.
Stella is Belgian.
Saudi and Kuwait - no booze
Bahrain - where Saudis and Kuwaitis go to get drunk
Qatar - booze available in Western hotels and a single store, open only to Westerners with residency
UAE - booze generally available in Western hotels and is freely available in Dubai
Yemen - technically illegal everywhere, but available under the table in Western hotels
Syria - it’s available, but avoid the local wine (the local beer is pretty good, though)
AFAIK, in the Maghreb, alcohol is legally sold and bought, but can be somewhat difficult to come by. I’m not sure if it’s due to legal restrictions or general bad perception of alcohol sale.
Someone told me recently that in his rural Algerian region, there was one bar serving alcohol servicing an area where dozens of thousands are living. Note that Algeria nevertheless exports a lot of wine. I often drank Algerian wine.
I’ve seen alcohol in some shops in Morocco, but it isn’t sold everywhere. It would be easy to find in a tourism city, from what I’m told, but again less so in a rural area. The typical cafe/bar won’t serve alcohol. Hotels (at least hotels receiving tourists) serve it. I’ve been told (again) that there are strict legal regulations, but that they’re enforced rather randomly.
I don’t know about Tunisia, but it also exports a (quite good) fig alcohol, so it probably isn’t forbidden by law there, either, even though, again, there could be strict legal restrictions, for all I know.
I’m going to guess, that Chefguy was talking about this Stella not Stella Artois.
Stella Artois is Belgian, but there’s also a native Egyptian beer called Stella.
It’s widely available but heavily taxed in Malaysia. It’s illegal for Moslems to possess or consume. I’ve hung out with kids of sultans in bars. The cops look the other way when it comes to them.
:smack:
Pakistan earns something like half a billion dollars a year exporting alcoholic drinks mainly due to this company.
Most mid to high level places will serve alcohol, but if you are a foreigner or a non-muslim* you have to show ID and request it, the wine list is never brought to you unless asked.
*muslims can also have it technically, but many places refuse, other don’t.
I still have nightmares about the floaters in that stuff. ::shudder::
I have never heard any such stories. What stories have you heard, and from where?
You can buy it in the UAE at special stores (in Dubai they are called “African and Eastern”) but you need a permit and obviously these are only available to non-Muslims and less obviously you need a certain income level. It is illegal in Sharjah (one of the 7 Emirates).
In Iran - sorry no Jack there, though if you take a bus fro Iran to Turkey you can buy in on the Turkish side of the border at Bazargan and other border posts.
Really Not All That Bright: Most expats outside Saudi do not live on compounds or in different neighborhoods. In Dubai our neighbors were Indian on one side, Iranian on the other, and local Emiratis across the street and behind us.