(Courthouse News) Religious groups argued their case against a Belgian law banning ritual animal slaughter before the European Union’s highest court on Wednesday, while Belgium denied the law infringes on religious freedom.
The law, which requires that animals be stunned before being killed, effectively bans Jewish and Islamic slaughter practices and has created unlikely allies. Jews and Muslims argued together before the European Court of Justice that the law violates freedom of religion, while far-right politicians and animal welfare groups on the other side said Belgium is protecting animals.
“The measure is applied neutrally and thus does not constitute a violation of freedom of religion,” attorney Valérie De Schepper argued on behalf of the Belgian government.
