unhappy with the compromise<\/a>, saying that it puts the future of religious practices into the hands of scientists and avoids the issue of religious freedom. This is a bizarre state of affairs in a pluralist European society. A recent report by the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance notes that the tone of Dutch political and public debate around integration has shown a \u201cdramatic deterioration\u201d in the last ten years. The surprising recent electoral success of the Dutch Freedom Party can be explained by the fact that it provides parliamentary support to the minority cabinet, which in turn seems inclined to protect Wilders, perhaps because of the minority cabinet\u2019s fear of losing its ability to govern. <\/p>\nSome Dutch politicians however, have been outspoken in their call for parliamentary debate about xenophobia in the Netherlands, notably Tofik Dibi, one of seven members of parliament who identify as practicing Muslims. Dutch Labor Party leader Job Cohen has also called for dialogue on the need \u201cto moderate our tone\u2026not to avoid debate but to engage in it openly and with mutual respect.\u201d One hopes that these voices of reason will be heeded.<\/p>\n
The common cause of Jews and Muslims uniting against the ban in their concern to protect their traditions of halal and kosher meat is due to the importance both religions place on preventing animal suffering. Many Jews and Muslims view the modern mechanical methods of stunning and killing animals in Western slaughterhouses far more barbaric, and no one seems yet to have come up with a positive scientific measurement of the pain felt by the animals at the point of death by either method.<\/p>\n
The arguments for and against ritual slaughter are passionate, subjective and liable to misinterpretation, and provide a potent mixture for populist politicians to exploit when national economies are in trouble and unemployment is rife. Hopefully, the Dutch Senate will reconsider the issue in the light of freedom of religion as laid down by Article 9 in the European Convention on Human Rights, which provides the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion.<\/p>\n
The Senate\u2019s treatment of the ban will be a test of this mature liberal European democracy\u2019s ability to provide consensus, compromise or conformity on a divisive issue within a centuries-old tradition of liberalism, human rights and tolerance for religious minorities. <\/p>\n
Dr. Azeem Ibrahim is a Fellow and member of the Board of Directors at the Institute of Social Policy and Understanding, former Research Scholar at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, and World Fellow at Yale University. To see more of his writings, visit www.azeemibrahim.com and follow him on Twitter (@AzeemIbrahim). This article was written for the Common Ground News Service (CGNews).<\/i><\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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