Third party certification of food
Submission 234
From: National Sikh Council of Australia Inc
Voice of the Sikhs in Australia (Inc No: INC9877869)
Tuesday, 9 June 201516 10:55 AM
To: Economics, Committee (SEN)
Subject: THIRD PARTY CERTIFICATION OF FOOD
Senate Standing Committees on Economics
Honourable Senators,
Sikh Council of Australia is the peak representative body of the Sikhs in Australia. It caters
for the religious, spiritual, educational, cultural needs of the Sikhs and resolves the issues
facing the Sikhs. It is also a member of the Global Sikh Council which is spokes body of the
Diaspora Sikhs.
Background
I, on behalf of the Sikh community in Australia, am writing to bring to your notice that we
the Sikhs do not eat Halal Meat or the food containing Halal ingredients, for the simple
reason that the animal has been cruelly and inhumanly slaughtered to give it the seal of
Islamic religious approval, “fit for the Muslims to eat and drink.” I have carefully considered
this very controversial subject also from a holistic perspective as almost 98% of the
Australian are not Muslims. Yet, we are forced to pay to make food fit to eat for only 2% of
the population. As a result of strong Muslim lobby groups, it is not just the Sikh who these
days unknowingly consume halal meat and no longer have a freedom of choice. We have no
objection if just under 2% of the Australian population wants to eat Halal food, slaughtered
according to their religious requirement, yet we do vehemently object if the same religiously
slaughtered food is surreptitiously being sold to us by the supermarkets, as non Halal food, by
not labelling the food as such and we eat something which is against our faith and we are
made to pay for Halal certification, something we don’t eat and thereby depriving us of our
right to have a choice.
I believe it is the duty of the government to provide its citizens with a choice of food and
introduce a system where by every citizen knows what he is eating and has a choice when it
comes to eating food. But if you go to any supermarket here in NSW almost every product
such as bread, oil, flour, frozen finger food produced in Australia, biscuits, chips all dairy
products, you name it, are Halal certified and even now the medicines are Halal certified.
This restricts the Sikhs in terms of what they can purchase and consume... Most of the
food sold to the students in NSW school canteens, Sports venues, to the patients in the
Hospitals and to commuters on XPT train is Halal. We have written letters to the Minister of
Schools and the Department of Education and the Minister of Health; had a few meetings
with the so called Directors which was a wastage of our time, because unfortunately the
bureaucrats either don’t understand or don’t want to understand and resolve the issue, or
maybe they respect the tenets of just one particular religion, which is against the Australian
Constitution.
Third party certification of food
Submission 234
Tax or duty on consumables in Australia
There is a tax or duty on certain goods we buy, but that tax or duty is paid only by those who
buy those goods, those who don’t buy don’t’ pay the duty or tax. Similarly there is a toll tax
on certain Highways, it is only paid by those who use those Highways and those who don’t
use it don’t pay. This is a system which aims to promote fairness for every citizen
irrespective of his religious orientation, and the money thus collected is used for the
maintenance of the roads, for the benefit of the Australians.
“Jazia” according to Sharia Law is a Tax paid by the non Muslims who live in the Muslim
Countrries, but we are living in Australia, which is not an Islamic country but are forced to
pay “Jazia” to make Halal food and food products for the Muslims. The community wants to
know who approved this scam, when and why; and why “Jazia” is being imposed on 98% of
the Australians in their own country. Community wants to know where do those millions of
dollars thus collected from us as, Mr. Mohammad Al Mohali, one of the proponents of the
Halal Certification Authority boasts of becoming Milliner on the Youtube. So why, not only
the Sikhs but other 98% of the Australian population should pay for the dietary requirement
of 2% of the population. Any food which has to be Halal certified must be paid
by those who want to eat Halal food. This is a scam
Back to the Basics of the Australian Constitution
“The Commonwealth shall not make any law for establishing any religion, or for imposing
any religious observance, or for prohibiting the free exercise of any religion, and no
religious test shall be required as a qualification for any office or public trust under the
Commonwealth.”
Then why the Govt. has been, not only promoting the religious doctrine of one religion
and taxing the 98% of the people to promote the Sharia Law for 2% of the population, but
is facilitating and imposing covertly and overtly , Jazia” the Halal Certification tax on the
Australians. .Agriculture Minister Hon. Barnaby Jones said that Halal is the way for the
export. Why can't the Federal government make it a ruling whereby only the meat which is to
be exported to Muslim countries is made Halal and for the local use it should be non Halal.
The same ruling should apply for other food stuff manufactured in Australia. This will save
us from paying the unnecessary Jazia (Halal Certification tax) in our non Muslim country.
Denmark, Norway and Sweden which export poultry, dairy and dairy products have done it,
where the Muslim population is greater than in Australia.
Companies pay tens of thousands of dollars to get the Halal Certification stamp, which
according to Habib Bewley who is an Imam in South Africa is a scam to collect
money by fooling Muslim; Sikh Community wants to know where those millions of
dollars go. Because of the no discloser clause in the scam even the taxman cannot find out as
to how much money he had earned from the companies for the use of Halal Certification
Stamp. One of the proprietors of this scam Mr. Mohammad Al Mohali (if I have correctly
spelled his name) was boasting on the Youtube that he has become millionaire. , Does he pay
any tax on his income? and when asked if he pays to the terrorists, he said that he doesn’t
Third party certification of food
Submission 234
give to the terrorists but it all goes to buy shoes for his wife. We want to know where that
money goes, definitely not to buy a pair of ladies shoes.
It is most inequitable that we, living in a non Islamic country should pay “Jazia” an Islamic
religious tax and submit ourselves to eating what is forbidden to us by our faith.
To demand Halal Food is the first step in the implementation of Sharia law, next will be
religious education, as it is happening in America. The Council of Islamic Education in the
USA has prepared and introduced a three week Social Study course for the7th grade students
in public schools in the USA(Ref: Google, Tabool Article for the Tennesseas -- Brigtcove)
Which is very scary and I am sure you must have seen this video talk of Bridigitte Gabrial
Denver. This will ultimately be introduced here in Australian Education system to the 6th or
7th grade students, because most of our leaders are not visualising or imagining as to what is
happening here and what is being pushed covertly here in Australia to the Education system
behind the scene. All food sold in school canteens in NSW, even if there is not one Muslim
Student, is Halal. We have tried our best to get an equitable system but failed and our
children are forced to eat Halal food which is forbidden by our faith. Next will be
compulsory knowledge of the Arabic language to be introduced clandestinely in Grade 2 or
three. If we did not wakeup now it will be too late to do anything as it has happened to the
Halal Certification, which according to Muslim scholars and Imams, is the biggest scam to
get rich overnight. ( Ref: 9 Khutba on Halal Certification Fiasco 27.01.2012
|| By: Imam Habib Bewley who is an Imam in South Africa)
The National Sikh Council of Australia proposes that
1. The label should clearly show whether the product is Halal Certified OR non Halal
certified and it should also be in the list of ingredients.
2. Those who want to eat Halal (2% of the Australian) should pay for the Halal
certification stamp, and this Jazia, the Islamic religious tax shouldn’t be imposed
indiscriminately on 98% of the Australian. This can be done by making only the meat
which is meant for export as Halal. All the meat and meat products for the local
consumption should be non Halal, because there are plenty of butcher shops in every
city who supply ONLY HALAL MEAT so they will pay for the Halal Certification. It
is also a fact that no devotee Muslim will ever buy meat from Woolworths, Coles or
other supermarket because they (a Muslim friend of mine told me that they,
Muslims, do not buy meat from the supermarkets because he Pork is placed next
to beef and Lamb which contaminates the whole meat in the supermarket and
they only buy from Halal butcher shop, of which there are many).
3. The products which have been subjected to Halal certification should be clearly
marked on the products in English as the Stamp is usually in Arabic language, which
is deceptive as not very many Australians can read Arabic Language. It has become a
fashion that the shops which sell Halal products write Halal in Arabic language only,
but they must write in English because the official language of Australia is English
and not Arabic, and as the Australian cannot read or understand Arabic language they
cannot understand whether the food is Halal or Non Halal.
4. We the consume must know, that what we are eating is permissible for us to eat or
not, and we must have a choice to buy and eat Non Halal product, especially if you
go to the restaurants all meat hey serve is Halal and they don’t tell or display that only
Halal is served. Even if they write that only Halal is served then where is our right to
have a choice of Non vegetarian Non Halal meat? So the restaurants must display
what meat they are serving and must have both Halal and non Halal dishes.
Third party certification of food
Submission 234
5. As the Hon. Minister of Agriculture says that Halal, for the export is the only way
otherwise Australia might lose that trade for the Middle East countries. To overcome
his concern make only those products Halal which are meant for export purposes and
non Halal food for the local consumption, those who do not eat Halal products. We
have no objection if Muslim wants to eat Halal but they should pay to make it Halal.
6. We want to know where those billions of dollars, collected by the proponent of the
Halal Certification Stamp, go to definitely not for buying lady’s shoes as Mr.
Mohammad
Al
Moholi
claims
on
the
You
Tube
interview.
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LX7FuJHoouI )
Once again many thank for the Senate inquiry to listen to our grievances.
Yours Sincerely
Baw Singh Jagdev OAM
Secretary
For and on behalf of the National SIKH Council of Australia Inc
Postal address
Tuesday, 9 June 2015