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No change likely to
Jewish ritual slaughter
SYDNEY— According to media reports, the findings of a review into ritual slaughter, which have been leaked, will allow shechitah to continue, even though Australian standards
require that animals be electrically stunned immediately after ritual killing.
Shechitah, or Jewish ritual slaughter, has historically been asserted as the most humane method of killing animals for food.
The Executive Council of Australian Jewry (ECAJ) made this claim in its submissions to the review, initiated by the former government in 2007.
Despite the findings, the ECAJ argued in its submission that shechitah, which involves slitting an animal's throat, minimises the animal's pain before death and there is no proof
that electric stunning reduces any pain felt.
ECAJ president Robert Goot said his organisation requested that the inquiry preserve existing regulations for animal slaughter that allow for shechitah, as well as for Islamic ritual slaughter practices.
"The ECAJ has been in active discussion with the government departments responsible for these matters for almost 12 months," he said.
Religious authorities are presently exempt from using electric stunning during slaughter, a practice that is stipulated by the standards but not permitted by kashrut.
Animal rights groups support electric stunning during slaughter, with no exemptions.
Leaked results stated the inquiry found that ritual slaughter causes animals "pain and distress," but did not oppose the practice.
Meanwhile, Goot has rejected discontent among some rabbis that the ECAJ submissions had not been comprehensively sourced.
It is understood there is some dissatisfaction among rabbis, who claim that the roof body did not consult widely enough with rabbinical experts on shechitah before making its submissions.
However, the Rabbinical Council of Victoria, whose rabbis have been among the ECAJ's critics, released a statement saying its members have been involved in negotiations with the ECAJ on the matter.
Goot said the ECAJ's stance reflects Australian Orthodox rabbinical opinion.
"The ECAJ position, as most recently put to the Primary Industries Ministerial Committee, is a submission with which the Organisation of Rabbis of Australasia concurs, and its members concur."
He said there had been wide consultation with the rabbinate on the matter and "to my knowledge, there is no disagreement with the position that has been put as recently as September 18, 2009, by the ECAJ."
Local Council to investigate
racist daubings
SYDNEY - A number of local councils in Sydney's south and inner-west are investigating sightings of derogatory stickers comparing Zionism to Nazism.
The NSW Jewish Board of Deputies (JBD) alerted the councils to the stickers last week, after it received numerous complaints from community members who had spotted the stickers around the suburbs of Marrickville, Canterbury and Botany Bay.
The stickers depict the word Zionism followed by an equal sign and a swastika symbol. Other stickers included slogans such as "Free Palestine" and "Stop Genocide in Iraq."
A Canterbury Council official said: "Our rangers are investigating. If offending stickers are found, they will be removed."
A Botany Bay Council spokesperson said it had also ordered rangers to inspect the area on two separate occasions, but had not encountered the offensive stickers.
"We will certainly keep an eye out for them, and if we see them, we will certainly take them down," she said.
JBD CEO Vic Alhadeff said he knew of a number of community members who had voluntarily removed stickers.
"We certainly encourage that response and ask other members of the community to act accordingly if they come across material of a similar nature," he said.
"A swastika is not harmless graffiti; it is the ultimate symbol of racial hatred. These slogans have no place in our society, and the board will continue to monitor the situation."
Former Australian prime minister weighs into Hamas debate
MELBOURNE - Should the West engage Hamas? If ever there was an explosive debating topic, this was it.
The Monash Association of Debaters chose the proposition for its annual Vice-Chancellor's Debate on October 14 featuring six debaters including former prime minister Malcolm Fraser,
federal MP for Isaacs Mark Dreyfus and Zionist Council of Victoria president Dr Danny Lamm.
Knitted kippahs mixed with keffiyehs in a crowd nudging 1000, spilling into the aisles of a lecture theatre and adjoining foyer.
To the obvious relief of Monash vice-chancellor Professor Ed Byrne, the debaters remained civil, respected time limits and shook hands and chatted with opponents after the 90-minute debate.
Fraser, a vocal proponent of a Hamas dialogue, said that talking to Hamas is "not showing weakness, but strength", while establishing preconditions "is a sign of significant weakness."
He also slammed "the expansion of settlements,"which "does raise some questions about Israel's ultimate intentions".
Dr Lamm stressed Fraser was "a longtime friend" of Israel, but said the elder statesman was wrong on Hamas. A "win-win solution" involves a Jewish and Palestinian state, but Hamas wants "no place for Israel, no place for Jews".
Dreyfus detailed Hamas' record of repression against trade unionists and dissidents. And he condemned the kidnapping and detention of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.
Sir Zelman Cowen Honoured
MELBOURNE - Former governor-general Sir Zelman Cowen gathered with personal and professional friends at law firm Arnold Bloch Leibler on October 14 to celebrate his 90th birthday.
The lunch included representatives from the legal, commerce and art worlds, as well as Justices Michael Kirby and Michael Rozenes, who both spoke about Sir Zelman.
In welcoming the guests to the lunch, host Mark Leibler referred to Sir Zelman as a "national treasure." Leibler described his teacher and friend as "moderate and accepting in his views."
Retired High Court judge Justice Kirby said Sir Zelman's life, like the branches of a menorah, could be divided into seven public and private facets.
On the public side, Justice Kirby spoke of his service to education, as an academic and subsequently university vice-chancellor; his contribution to law reform; his role as
governor-general; and his work in both the United Kingdom and Australia - the latter for which he was recognised with an Order of Australia Medal.
On the personal side, Justice Kirby described him as modest and endearing; a lover of art, music and ideas; a person with a loving nature; a man of courage; and a genuine intellectual with a developed sense of humour.
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"His good fortune was our nature's good fortune," Justice Kirby said. "He is the most decorated and honoured scholar in Australia, but nonetheless he is a person of the utmost humanity and humility."
Justice Rozenes spoke of Sir Zelmand being a "key player" in the Jewish community for more than seven decades.
Justice Rozenes talked about the Jewish Museum of
Australia's upcoming birthday for Sir Zelman, during which the Australian Jewish history gallery will be re-named in his honour.
"Like Sir Zelman, the museum will be distinctly Australian and distinctly Jewish," Justice Rozenes said.
New era dawns for student body
MELBOURNE-- The Australasian Union of Jewish Students (AUJS) was reinvigorated earlier this month with a new mission statement ratified and anew executive elected.
Melbourne-based student Liam Getreu was voted the first national chairperson, replacing Perth's Daniel Kitay as president. In a statement issued by Getreu this week, he said that AUJS had adopted a new mission statement and also changed the names of portfolios to reflect its new
structure. The mission statement encompasses four
points: engagement, enrichment, development and action.
It will see AUJS continuing to engage as many Jewish students in Jewish life and Zionism, developing Jewish identity and fighting anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism on campus.
"It is a realignment of where AUJS should be going" Getreu said. Kitay added the new mission statement more accurately reflected the 21st century student - a student who attends
university, but has lots of other time commitments as well, "Students today have different needs to years ago" Kitay said.
Getreu said one of AUJS' main aims is to continue supporting Jewish students and Israel on campus.
He explained the pro-Palestinian student groups are organised and well supported, while AUJS has had a hart time balancing the ledger. "They have lots of foot solders and can get lots of people to rallies." But AUJS is making inroads.There have been anti-Israel resolutions that have failed to pass largely due to the efforts of AUJS.
Campuses such as La Trobe University in Melbourne
and Macquarie University in Sydney are particularly challenging for AUJS - with both universities having a large pro-Palestinian student body and a much smaller Jewish student population.
"If you want a mass response you've got to have a huge mass of people. At La Trobe, Jewish students are strong, but they are intimidated" he said.
AUJS regional branches will hold elections for their executives in the coming weeks.
Indigenous group reports
on Israel trip
MELBOURNE - Twelve indigenous Australians, who earlier visited Israel on a trip inspired by their ancestor's courage in the 1930's, met recently with Jewish community leaders to relate their impressions.
The Australians are descendants of William Cooper, who in 1938 led a delegation from the Australian Aboriginal League to the German consulate in Melbourne to protest Nazi
persecution of Jews during Kristallnacht, the Nazi progrom of November 9, 1938.
Israel's Ambassador to Australia, Yuval Rotem invited a representative of Cooper's family to Israel late last year to be honoured, but the idea triggered a broader initiative, resulting in the group's tour to Israel.
The visitors paid their respects at Yad Vashem, took in a Jewish National Fund tree planting, the Kotel, Ammunition Hill, Yom Hazikaron and Yom Ha'atzmut activities, a vist to
Betlehem, Masada, the Dead Sea, Nazareth, and all
quarters of Jerusalem's Old City.
Members of the group related their impressions at a lunch meeting, which the Jewish Community Council of Victoria CEO Geofrey Zygier, Jewish Holocaust Centre CEO Bernard Korbman, and the centers past president Shmuel Rosenkranz attended.
Kevin Russell, Cooper's great-grand son, who spoke at the lunch, said the Israel trip was "awesome, unbelievable..to learn we have such affinity with Jewish people in our culture and in our history."
Masada College safe and sound
ADELAIDE - Masade College in Adelaide received $300,000 from the Federal Government last week to cover security expenses. Masada College, the only Jewish school in Adelaide, is expected to use the grant to install an alarm system, install CCTV cameras and upgrade its fencing.
At the presentation, Federal Minister for Home Affairs Brendan O'Connor said " The security upgrades to be carried out at Masada College will help to further protect students."
The grant is a huge windfall for the school, which just has 30 students from pre-school to year seven.
An ambassadorial visit
PERTH— Austria's Ambassador to Australia, Dr Hannes Porias recently visited Perth Hebrew Congregation (PHC) during his recent visit to Western Australia. He met Rabbi Dovid Freilich at PHC and offered to facilitate a visit to the synagogue by Vienna's main chazan in the near future.
Rabbi Freilich thanked Dr Porias for the visit, explaining that given Austria's history of anti-Semitism, he was pleased that the ambassador had requested a meeting with PHC
The rabbi explained that his grandparents had married in Vienna, but they had eventually come to Australia to escape the anti-Semitic feeling in the Central European country in the 1920's and 1930's .
Joining the ambassador for the visit to PHC were Austrian Consul-General in West Australia Dr.Wolfgang Frick and Austrian consul-general in New South Wales, Guido Stok.
Top award tops off
stellar soccer season
MELBOURNE - Rachel Bach has been named best player of North Caulfield Maccabi senior women's soccer team.
Bach won the club's top honour by one vote from first-year player Rebecca Rubenstein, while Jess Nash placed third.
Former Australian player and current Melbourne Victory Captain, Tal Karp was the guest speaker at the North Caulfield Maccabi senior women's presentation night last week.
Karp spoke about how she started playing soccer at the age of seven with her brother in the local Maccabi boys team in Perth, how she progressed through the ranks and the sacrifices that she had to make along the way in order to achieve her ultimate goal in playing for her country in the World Cup and the Olympics.
Nash had a sensational second half of the season and was named as the most improved player award.
For the second year in a row, Rachel Rubenstein was the leading goal scorer, while Jessie Meleck's hard work and determination saw her rewarded with the coaches award and the club's captain.
Lani Kahn was again voted as the players' player of the year.
The team will have a break before preparations for season 2010 get underway.
The side will play in State League 2 next year after winning promotion to the competition.
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The Jews Down Under 