It was a big victory for the Jewish community as the Belgian Wallonia District Court upheld the right of Shechita as the court ruled to forbid it, would be an affront to freedom of religion as well as significantly harming human and religious right, which would be a violation of the law.

A number of local senators have challenged kosher slaughter; claiming animal suffering and seeking to compel the stunning of an animal before shechita.

Belgian Chief Rabbi Avraham Gigi praised the court’s decision, which he explains is viewed as a message to neighboring European nations as well.

Rabbi Gigi explains rabbonim met with the president of Machzikei Hadas in Antwerp, Rav Pinchas Kornfeld, together with heads of parties, and they explained the significance of shechita to Jews, asking on the lawmakers to vote against any effort to set shechita restrictions in place.

Rabbi Gigi and Rabbi Kornfeld met again on Wednesday, 26 Shevat with the persons standing behind the bill to once again explain the significance of kashrus and shechita, hoping to win them over. Rabbi Gigi added after the verdict was announced that if efforts continue to pass a law limiting shechita, he and his colleagues not hesitate to take their case to the International Court in The Hague for adjudication.

Belgium is a federation made up of three regions: Flanders, Wallonia, and Brussels.

Bologna is composed of residents of the community and Wallonia and 80% of French-speaking Brussels. Region Wallonia has some 3.5 million people or about 33% of residents of Belgium.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)