While searching for the link between religion and food, I was amazed to find many articles on halal meat issues in France. Looking at my dinner plate, I thought how on earth did it end in France? I love my food (I consume a strict halal diet), there is no doubt about it. But having it discussed by politicians across the channel and becoming world headlines was something I never dreamt of.
I was pretty sure the matter was not just an issue of halal meat, there was more to it. As most of us know that halal food is not something new but has been in existence for more than 1400 years. How could it be then, it was being treated as an alienated discussion. Curiously I started to look for various related articles and videos online. Most of them were discussing the same issue of how halal meat became a campaign issue in France. It was not long after that I found an article in the Washington Post, stating that the French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said, “I have already said that the clash of civilizations is not my cup of tea, I think halal meat problem is in reality a false problem”.
The Independent indicated that Mr Sarkozy (struggling in the opinion poll) copied the far right leader Marine Le Pen in order to get votes, by posing the question, ‘Should non-Muslims unknowingly eat meat from animals killed according to Islamic law’? Of course, everyone has a right to know what they eat. But is this the real problem? The real problem at hand seems to be the ever unpopular economic crisis. In an attempt to steer the attention away from it, politicians turned public attention towards religious slaughtering.
A very well thought idea. But who does the finger point at for this ‘halal meat’ problem? Answer to this could be, a dinner plate consisting of a religious diet. For me this is seriously dangerous (fuelling the fire of hatred in society over religious food, while politicians get their seats).
The election might have been won with religious meat as a central campaign, but the unity of Jews and Muslims was an expected outcome over this (both follow similar animal slaughtering rituals). What do you think?
I really don't understand the beef (forgive the pun) the French government has with halal meat. If they are so worried about the public opinion wouldn't it be better if halal meat was supplied to Muslim butchers, kosher to Jewish butchers and meat from stunned animals for everyone else. This way they'd be catering to everyone's needs. Criticising the slaughter methods and calling them 'outdated' is a direct attack on the religions themselves. I find it quite refreshing that the people from Muslim and Jewish faiths made a stand and protested together.Like you said, halal and kosher meat is not something new it's been part of the religions from the start, unlike stunning which is just a recent practice.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comment. You are right that if French government was concerned with public opinion, then different types of meat should have been available to different faiths. There are at least four million Muslims, and up to 700,000 Jewish people in France, which is not a small number. But it seems that the issue is not the public concern, it is more to do with the religion itself. This is not the only case in France, not long ago 'ban on headscarf' was in media spotlight, which now diverted to religious diet.
ReplyDeleteI wonder why the situation has got this far...I think the French government find it difficult now to adress the issue since they must be asking where were the Muslims and Jews before? why had they not raised a fuss about this issue before...I persoanally think the Jews and Muslims of france are not unnanimous on this issue. A friend of mine who is originally from france told me most Muslims have no issues eating unhalal meat from take aways or restaurants, they have no issue with their children eating meat at school that is not halal (as long as it is not pork). Like I said these communities themselves are not unnanimous on their requirement of meat slauaghtered according to religious beleif and that's why there is an issue on this matter in France.
ReplyDeleteAs far as I think the issue is not so much with the meat being halal or kosher, it is more to do with politics, I mean winning the heart of the far right to get more votes. Muslims and Jews have been living in France from many many years, it is not something new.
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