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in response to reader comment: Muslim Hallal robbing the system.

Submitted by Sardar Ravi Ranjan Singh 'Bharat Panthi' (India), Apr 15, 2010 at 10:49

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Mid-East princess in plea to Rudd on halal slaughter

LORNA EDWARDS

02 Nov, 2009 05:43 AM

THE King of Jordan's sister has appealed to the Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, to stop the ritual slaughter of conscious animals for halal meat in Australia, saying it was not necessary under Islamic principles.

Princess Alia bint al-Hussein of Jordan, who is the sister of King Abdullah II of Jordan, said she had written to Mr Rudd saying that any lowering of animal welfare standards in Australia for religious reasons would be a blow to the country's reputation and undermine progress in the Middle East.

"Contrary to some claims, killing without stunning is not necessary under Islamic principles," she said.

The Australian standard on ritual slaughter for halal and kosher meat states that animals must first be rendered unconscious by electrical stunning before their throats are cut.

But under a disputed federal guideline, the Government has allowed at least four Victorian abattoirs exemptions to kill without stunning to fulfil Middle Eastern export contracts over the past two years.

"Reducing [Australia's] standards to permit animals to be slaughtered while fully conscious may meet the personal preferences of a minority but it is not an example that will inspire positive change, nor encourage the acceptance of pre-slaughter stunning in the Middle East," she said.

The Primary Industries Ministerial Council of federal and state agriculture ministers will meet in Perth on Friday to discuss the issue, but opponents of killing without stunning are concerned exemptions will be allowed to continue or the standard will be changed.

The previous government ordered a review of ritual slaughter in 2007, but the present Minister for Agriculture, Tony Burke, has not released the review report and is yet to decide on the issue.

Princess Alia said she believed Mr Rudd had a genuine interest in animal welfare and had assisted Jordan with upgrading equipment previously provided by Australia that she considered inhumane at the main abattoir in the Jordanian capital, Amman.

Jordan imports more than a million live sheep and cattle from Australia each year.

The Prime Minister's office had no comment yesterday.

Mr Burke said agriculture ministers would receive an update on technical detail on the issue at Friday's meetings.

"There are a variety of views within Islam as to what constitutes halal food and a similar range of views in Judaism as to what constitutes kosher food," he said.

"It's not for [the] Government to adjudicate over these differences, but it is our role within the spectrum of faiths in Australia to promote the most humane practices."

But Princess Alia said Muslims who believed animals could not be stunned before slaughter for halal meat were uneducated about the true teachings of Islam.

"I say this based on several fatwas and extensive discussions with the Islamic authorities who are qualified to pronounce upon such matters."

The Australian Meat Industry Council's veterinary counsel, John Dorian, said the council did not have the technical or religious expertise to make value judgments on ritual slaughter.

"Our position is that we will comply with the Australian standard and we expect the people who write the Australian standard and the policymakers who direct the standard basically to get it right," he said.

"Obviously as an export industry in Australia, we are always cognisant of the rest of the world's view of what we do and we try to do it the best way we can."

Princess Alia has been at the forefront of efforts to introduce stunning to Jordanian abattoirs, and her intervention has led to the bulldozing of an inhumane slaughterhouse and the closure of illegal abattoirs.

A foundation established by her this year has sought advice from the animal welfare group Animals Australia, which has been protesting against mistreatment of livestock in the Middle East and Australia's live export trade.

Australia exports 1.3 million tonnes of red meat, of which 382,000 tonnes is certified halal.

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Reader comments (25) on this item

Title Commenter Date Thread
2Qatar Defying UN, Bullying India (Bharat), insulting Hindus. Harboring muslim accused by India [388 words]Ravi RanjanApr 2, 2010 08:03170879
22Wake up, Know Halal Jihad. Petition filed in Indian Parliament to let non-muslims have food of their choice. [2974 words]Ravi RanjanApr 2, 2010 07:27170877
8Halal is Jihad [11 words]mohinderAug 27, 2010 10:47170877
I do agree totaly [64 words]Mohit KhoslaNov 11, 2020 13:37170877
2what colour do the Jews wear? [116 words]KristaFeb 25, 2008 14:13121043
2Very nicely said, Krista [71 words]JeffMar 2, 2008 12:41121043
Why blaming Islam? [96 words]HassanFeb 3, 2011 17:06121043
1Blame Islam because -- it is obvious!!! [86 words]JaladhiFeb 4, 2011 14:19121043
Neither did the Muslim world. [111 words]HassanFeb 5, 2011 19:47121043
13they are trying explode [51 words]Ravi Singh Panth BhartiFeb 15, 2011 08:26121043
1Sardar Ravi Ranjan Singh "bharat Panthi" . . . are you serious [168 words]HassanFeb 18, 2011 00:33121043
3thanks [127 words]raviFeb 22, 2011 11:29121043
1Ravi [139 words]HassanFeb 24, 2011 00:52121043
4be yourself dear [123 words]raviFeb 26, 2011 11:48121043
To Ravi [153 words]HassanFeb 27, 2011 22:16121043
2Another victim of Arabian imperialism [505 words]dhimmi no moreMar 1, 2011 07:25121043
1To dhimmi no more [134 words]HassanMar 3, 2011 20:54121043
3The fragile Muslim mind [708 words]dhimmi no moreMar 5, 2011 07:36121043
to dhimmi no more- Read my comment in Egypt's Chance, not here. Be patient [279 words]HassanMar 5, 2011 20:27121043
5big deal! [99 words]snakesavageFeb 25, 2008 11:33121028
10Muslim Hallal robbing the system. [123 words]YnnatchkahFeb 25, 2008 00:17121000
2Real Princes [656 words]Sardar Ravi Ranjan Singh 'Bharat Panthi'Apr 15, 2010 10:49121000
Muslim Hallal is not dirty [117 words]HassanFeb 12, 2011 03:00121000
About Time [11 words]Tony ClarkJan 23, 2006 10:2532236
1Islam [19 words]Michelle WayneAug 22, 2009 21:1932236

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