Any United Nations effort to protect the right of minorities to observe religious dietary rules will be meaningless for Jews unless they have a corollary guarantee of the right to practice Schechita, Jewish ritual slaughter, an Orthodox leader declared here today.
Dr. Isaac Lewin, chairman of the American section of the Agudas Israel World Organization, made that point in a statement during discussion before the UN Subcommission on the prevention of discrimination and protection of minorities. He was one of three spokesmen for non- governmental organizations. The others were Moses Moskowitz of the Consultative Council of Jewish Organizations and Gerhard Jacoby of the World Jewish Congress.
Dr. Lewin was commenting on one of the 12 draft rules proposed in a report on discrimination in religious matters, submitted by the special rapporteur for the study, Dr. Arcot Krishnaswami of India. One of the draft rules was that “no one should be prevented from observing the dietary practices prescribed by his religion or belief.
Dr. Lewin proposed that the draft rule be re-phrased to read: “No one should be prevented from observing the religious practices which are necessary for the observance of dietary laws, as they are prescribed by his religion or belief.”
URGE EFFECTIVE METHODS TO PREVENT RELIGIOUS DISCRIMINATION
Mr. Moskowitz, whose organization speaks for the American Jewish Committee, Anglo-Jewish Association and Alliance Israelite Universelle of France, pointed to one omission in the proposed rules for preventing discrimination in the area of religion: an injunction to public authorities not to practice such discrimination. He suggested that unless at the every beginning of the rules mention was made of the threat to freedom of religion posed by discrimination on the basis of religion, the rules would fall short of their purpose.
He declared that discrimination on the basis of religion is “a most grievous form of coercion” which brings about a change of religion or an outright denial of it. Referring to the history of discrimination in nations throughout the world, Mr. Moskowitz said: “A governmental policy which deliberately discriminates against persons and groups on the ground of their adherence to a particular religion will not hesitate to discriminate against them in the matter of their religious rights and practices.”
Dr. Gerhard Jacob, representative of the World Jewish Congress, offered a number of proposals on behalf of the WJC for the basic rules to guide governments in eradicating discrimination in religious rights and practices.
To Dr. Krishnaswami’s proposal that “parents have a prior right to decide upon the religion or belief in which children should be brought up, “the WJC urged addition of the proposal that parents should have “an unfettered opportunity of securing religious instruction for their children through the religious community of their own choice.”
The WJC representative also suggested a bolder wording of Krishnaswami suggestion with regard to religious worship. Dr. Jacoby proposed that “freedom to manifest religion or belief, either alone or in community with others and in public or in private, should be assured on the basis of equal treatment of all religions.”
He proposed an addition to the basic rules that would guarantee the right to every religious community to organize itself nationally and to cooperate with co-religionists in other communities “in furtherance of the common interests of the denomination.”
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
