Next in Line to Ban Shchita: Poland?
Poland’s Attorney General says the practice of Kosher and Halal ritual slaughter violates the nation’s animal protection act.
Andrzej Seremet has now submitted an application to Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal, a supervisory judicial body that resolves disputes in the country’s laws, so that the matter can be reviewed.
Seremet was requested to investigate the matter by a number of non-governmental organisations including the Viva! Animal Rights Foundation.
According to Polish law, animals must be stunned prior to being slaughtered.
However, when butchering animals to create halal meat, Muslims traditionally follow the rite of killing the animals with a single cut to the throat, with no stunning beforehand.
The same process is applied by Jews so as to create kosher meat.
Although Polish law holds that animals must be stunned before being slaughtered, an exception in the law allows this to be waived where ritual slaughter is concerned.
Robert Hernand, spokesman for the Attorney General, told the Dziennik Gazeta Prawna daily that the Ministry of Agriculture had “exceeded its legal rights” by adopting this exception.
Nevertheless, during the Conference of European Rabbis in Poland in 2011, President Bronislaw Komorowski appeared to defend the practice by speaking out against Dutch plans to outlaw ritual slaughter.
Poland’s head of state said the Dutch bill “targets the Muslim and Jewish community” and represents “a crisis of tolerance” in Europe.
At present, an EU directive on animal slaughter calls for stunning prior to the kill, but the directive allows for exceptions where ritual slaughter is concerned.
Sweden has banned outright kills made without the animal being stunned beforehand, as have non EU states Iceland, Norway and Switzerland.
Holland has yet to pass legislation on the matter.
Anyone surprised Part 2
The most historically long-term anti-semitic country (including Germany & Spain) & you’re surprised???
Bone up on European history, my friends.
Milhouse
What are you talking about? For centuries Poland was a wonderful and welcoming place for Jews. We called it “po lin — here we can rest”. It only turned antisemitic in the early 20th century.
ANIMALS WORRYING ABOUT ANIMAL PROTECTION
Did their memory fail them?
what’s with the people protection-
well what can one expect…
Auschwitz was also a form of animal protection
Europe meat problems
The meat from Poland is not Kosher, you shecht 1 tone, you get the double , you pack, and you get meat that has bean packed on shabbes without a mashgiach. please just trust in your local shochet,its not who is going to earn more or les on the meat market ,but as the Rebbe gave us one of the mivtsoyim kashrut achila ushtiya , and this has no price !!!!!
CR
“For centuries Poland was a wonderful and welcoming place for Jews”
Until the 20th century became the bloodiest in history in that country. Even before the war up to 200,000 Jews had been murdered in acts of mob violence during the prior 4-5 decades. Today’s Poles whine and moan about President Obama’s “Polish death camp” remark. This was one rare instance where the President was actually on the mark.
Milhouse
CR, yes, that is true, but how is it relevant? Yes, in the 20th century the Poles were antisemites, but how does that make commenter #1 (“Anyone surprised Part 2”) less of an ignoramus or a liar?