The Muslim News

MINA, Saudi Arabia, (Arab News): Islamic Development Bank (IDB) President Ahmad Muhammad Ali, who was personally supervising the Moaisem Abattoirs’ operation yesterday was extremely upset with the “illegal” and “unregulated” slaughtering of animals in Mina.

The Kingdom launched a program for optimal utilization of sacrificial meat in 1983. According to the program for the Utilization of Sacrificial Animals During Haj, which is managed by the IDB, pilgrims can purchase coupons and delegate the bank to sacrifice an animal on their behalf.

The idea behind the program is to make use of the meat by distributing it to the poor and needy both in the Kingdom and abroad. The IDB chief said that since the IDB had been involved in the program, it had made various improvements in order to meet the requirements of the ever-increasing demand.

On an exclusive tour of the high-tech slaughtering facility in Mina, Ali said, “The unregulated slaughtering of sacrificial animals around our facility and other parts of Mina is a serious health hazard as those animals have not been examined and cleared by veterinarians. And secondly, the unregulated slaughtering has an adverse effect on the sanitary and environmental conditions of the area.”

Ali said that people had to be informed through the media and other means about the health hazard the unregulated slaughtering posed. He appealed to the media to assist in educating pilgrims about the health risks of “unregulated slaughtering.” He went on to say, “There is no freezing facility for those animals and this results in carcasses lying unattended for hours and becoming spoiled in the process.” He said pilgrims should avail themselves of the facility available to them for sacrificing animals through the government and the IDB.

He said that the global recession had in no way affected the demand for sacrificial animals. This year the IDB has planned to sacrifice 700,000 animals in the 84 hours of its operation. “But indications are that we will exceed that number,” Ali said, adding that the supply was adequate for meeting the demand. He said that the IDB had started preparations for this year’s Haj immediately after last year’s. The process involved floating tenders for the supply of animals, hiring professional butchers, cleaners and other support staff.

“We ensure a high-level of professionalism in our operation in order to meet the expectations of pilgrims from different parts of the world,” Ali said. He suggested that pilgrims avoid coming to the abattoir at the peak hours between 10 a.m. and 1.00 p.m. “It is better to come after that or in early morning,” he said.

In last year’s Haj, the IDB slaughtered 759,212 animals, out of which 520,202 were distributed in the Kingdom with the rest being sent to neighboring Muslim countries. Yesterday, 661,000 animals were slaughtered.

Speaking about the IDB’s operation, Khalid A. Nazer, information and external relations chief, said that it had launched an online service three years ago to enable pilgrims to buy coupons in advance for sacrificial animals. “This year, through our site — www.adahi.org — we sold 30,000 coupons.” Nazer also said that services were provided throughout the year. Anybody wanting to sacrifice an animal can avail themselves of this service.

Most pilgrims who choose not to perform the sacrifice personally purchase the coupons, which cost about SR395 this year. They are thus spared the problems of slaughtering and distributing the meat of the animals. This year the IDB sold 700,000 sacrificial coupons and it purchased 650,000 sheep, plus a large number of camels and cows. Slaughtering so many animals over a three-day period is an immense task requiring highly sophisticated facilities and substantial resources.

In 2001, Saudi Arabia built the world's biggest slaughterhouse in Mina at a cost of SR470 million ($125 million). This state-of-the-art facility sprawling over a 500,000 sq. meter area is able to slaughter 200,000 sheep a day utilizing some 10,000 workers. They work in two 12-hour shifts.

Outside the slaughterhouse the scene is entirely different. Some came to offer the sacrifice personally. Others came from the nearby cities of Makkah, Jeddah and Taif to collect sacrificial meat. There are others who want to buy cheap meat from some Africans who were selling carcasses they received as “charity” from pilgrims.

http://www.arabnews.com/?page=1§ion=0&article=117090&d=9&m=12&y=2008

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