The world executive of the Agudas Israel announced today that it had lodged a formal complaint with the Government of Austria against a ban on Jewish ritual slaughter by the regional governor in Upper Austria.
The Agudah executive took the action after consultations with the Austrian Embassy in London. The executive noted that the ban had been sustained by the district court in Austria but asserted that it was contrary to Article 18 of the Declaration of Human Rights of which Austria is a signatory. That article contains an affirmation of “freedom of religion and manifestations of religious teachings, practice and observance.”
The Agudah executive said the ban particularly affected Orthodox refugees, including hundreds of observant Jews from Hungary, awaiting emigration from Austria. The executive had sent to the Austrian district governor a full documentation on the humanitarian basis of Jewish ritual slaughter with a request that the governor give additional consideration to the ban “with a view to protecting Jewish religious rights.”
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