The European Jewish Congress (EJC) has welcomed the decision by Poland’s parliament to permit the continuation of shechita, Jewish kosher slaughter for meat, to meet the needs of the community.
"We are satisfied that the representatives of the Polish people have decided that the Jewish communities' religious freedom will not be harmed," said Dr. Moshe Kantor, president of the EJC. "We welcome the decision and hope that it will put an end to the attempts to curtail Jewish practices that meet the highest and most humane standards."
The statement appeared in a position paper by the Sejm, Poland’s parliament, that was sent recently to the country’s constitutional tribunal. While commercial activity around Jewish slaughter, or shechita, remains forbidden ,"in its current form, Polish law does not permit penalizing slaughter for internal Jewish communities," the letter read.
"We hope that the spirit of compromise which involves the safeguard of religious freedoms enshrined in the European Union will be an example for other nation’s which are seeking to ban Jewish practices," Kantor said. "We hope the Danish government will study this decision carefully and reopen their own decision to ban shechita ."
Denmark recently banned Jewish and Muslim ritual slaughter on the orders of Agriculture and Food Minister Dan Jørgensen.
- "The EJC with its affiliate, Poland’s Union of Jewish Religious Communities, which played an important role in this decision, will continue to fight for religious freedom across Europe," Kantor said.
"It is vital that Jews, like all law-abiding Europeans, are allowed to practice their religion without impediment or obstruction."