A library in Espoo has set up a provisional prayer space for Muslims during Ramadan, the Muslim month of fasting.
The idea for a prayer space for Muslims at the library branch at the Entresse shopping mall came after reports that a gym operating in the same mall had banned prayers in its locker rooms.
Muslims had taken to holding their prayers in the locker room because they could not find another place in the mall for the purpose.
“When we read about it, we wondered if the library might be of help somehow. The prayer space was organised on the basis of my decision”, said regional library director Terhi Nikulainen to the local weekly newspaper Länsiväylä.
Nikulainen says that more than half of the regular customers of the Entresse library are of Somali background.
In the interview, she said that the prayer space, which has been separated from the rest of the library, was a move to serve a large group among regular users of the library at a time when they are required to pray several times a day.
According to Nikulainen, there has been negative feedback from one library customer.
