 Animal welfarists have repeatedly called for the trade to be banned on grounds of its inhumanity, asking that it be replaced by a chilled and frozen meat trade. The main argument used to refuse this request is it would contravene Islamic law, making the meat unacceptable to the vast majority of the industry’s Muslim importing countries – the meat would not be ‘halal’. Halal is Arabic for lawful or permitted and is used to describe the food that conforms to Islamic dietary law. Islamic law includes a number of rules that are designed to minimise the suffering and ensure the dignity of animals before they die.
For instance:
- Animals should not be cruelly transported or handled (see image of sheep being thrown around in Israel)
- Animals should not be slaughtered in the presence of another animal
- Animals should be slaughtered quickly and professionally
The Australian exporters ignore these rules as a matter of course, making a nonsense of their argument. There are abattoirs in Australia that are fully accredited for halal slaughter, but allowing for the animal to be stunned prior to death, thus reducing the amount of suffering. Moreover, during the 1990s, when Saudi Arabia rejected Australian sheep on the grounds of disease, it was willing to accept frozen and chilled meat instead. The Australian authorities often argue that the Middle East countries do not have refrigeration; this is just not true.
Blaming Islamic law for the continuation of this vile trade simply does not work!
The truth is that this trade is highly lucrative for the exporters and is supported by the Australian Government which is no surprise as it generates huge tax revenue.
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