01/11/06 Ritual Slaughtering in Podravka
Animal Friends reacts to the ritual slaughtering of 60 bulls in Podravka's slaughterhouse Danica
BLEEDING TO DEATH
The existing Animal Welfare Act does not include any regulations on ritual or ceremonial slaughtering of animals (for religious reasons), that is, it simply does not mention it. However, Article 10 of the Act states that an animal should "only be slaughtered provided that it has been tranquilized prior to bleeding to death." This means that currently ritual slaughtering of animals is performed illegally in Croatia. The Animal Welfare Act prescribes a fine of 2,500 do 5,000 kuna for this form of violation, both for physical and legal persons. Which again means that Podravka's meat producer Danica, in which 60 bulls have been slaughtered, broke the law even though it possessed the halal certificate. It is hard to understand how any meat producer could be granted such certificates, given the fact that it is against the law. Moreover, we consider it shameful that Podravka should be performing such brutal slaughtering of animals, in which they die slowly, in agony while fully conscious.
Our organization condemns all violence against animals and thus also slaughtering, which is the most brutal act of humans against animals. Killing always remains killings, but ritual/ceremonial slaughtering deserves even greater condemnation for its outspoken brutality and torturing of animals. It is difficult to understand that any religious festivity should be celebrated with animal slaughter. An even greater paradox is the fact that scientists have proved that the animal’s blood remains the same regardless of whether it was slaughtered while conscious or not.
Countries of the European Union tend to prohibit ritual slaughtering because of loud objections and outrage of the public towards such cruelty towards animals. The influence that religious communities exert to the society makes it difficult to realize such prohibitions, but we hope that ritual slaughtering will soon be forbidden. Those countries, which have legally regulated ceremonial slaughtering, have provided very strict guidelines for this type of slaughtering.