The Dutch government said it will appoint a commission to study new tightened rules for ritual slaughter to satisfy animal rights activists without infringing on Jewish and Muslim traditions.
The announcement came as the leader of the small Animal Rights Party, Marianne Thieme, decided to withdraw a bill calling for a ban of the practice of kosher slaughter, or shechita, without stunning after a majority of members of the Dutch Senate, the upper house of the parliament, objected to such a ban because it violates freedom of religion.
Earlier this year, the lower house of the Dutch parliament had voted in favor of a prohibition, but since then several political parties changed their stance on the matter, including the Socialist and Liberal parties, the largest groups in the Senate.
The anti-Muslim Party for Freedom led by Geert Wilders supported Thieme’s proposed ban which led to protests from Jewish and Muslim groups.
The bill had required that animals be stunned before slaughter. Jewish and Muslim ritual slaughter must be performed with the animal fully conscious.
Under a compromise presented by Agriculture Minister Henk Bleker, an agreement could be made with Jewish and Muslim slaughterhouses regarding the length of time that an animal is conscious before dying and the number of animals to be ritually slaughtered.
Bleker said a commission will draw up standards on how long animals can remain conscious and on educating slaughterers. It will include registration and quality requirements for slaughterhouses.
Before a vote which was postponed to January, the Senate will review Bleker’s proposal.
Rabbi Arye Goldberg, Deputy Director of the Rabbinical Centre of Europe (RCE), an organization representing over seven hundred rabbis and Jewish communities throughout Europe, welcomed the Dutch decision to shelve the ban on shechita.
"This decision is a clear victory for common sense, tolerance and freedom of religion," he said.
"We are grateful to those Dutch politicians who helped us defeat a very problematic bill that could have had a very significant effect on traditional Jewish life in the Netherlands."
About one million Muslims live in Holland and around 40,000 Jews.