What Malaysian Muslims Have To Say About The "Ritual Slaughter Lesson" In A Primary School
Some 12-year-old students have reportedly participated in a "mock animal sacrificial ritual".
By Tang Ruxyn — 14 Oct 2016, 03:24 PM
It has come to the public's attention that a primary school in Batu Caves has conducted "mock animal sacrificial ritual" lessons for some of its students
An article by Free Malaysia Today revealed that Year 6 Muslim pupils in the school had participated in lessons involving the act of slaughtering (sembelih) quails in the school compound.
With the Parent-Teacher Association's (PTA) consent and under the supervision of an Islamic Studies teacher, the students were taught the correct ways to slaughter the quails according to Islamic teachings.
It was reported that some of these Muslims students' parents were apparently shocked and concerned, questioning if the exercise is part of the national syllabus. One parent claimed that his child was traumatised after taking part in the activity.
It was also revealed that students also took part in an exercise on the ritual bath (mandi wajib), an obligatory act for Muslims after sexual intercourse or ejaculation.
Since the news broke out, some netizens have expressed their concern over the matter. They said that such lessons should not be conducted in schools.
Malaysians, especially Muslims, have stepped in to shed some light on the matter
Many of them stressed that it has been a common practice to educate the younger ones on the Islamic method of animal slaughter since the Islamic law requires the animals intended for human consumption to be slain in a certain manner to be considered as halal.
Seeing that this issue might have been a mere misunderstanding, these netizens took the time to write lengthy comments on social media in order to enlighten non-Muslims who may not be familiar with the matter.
This is not the first time a school has conducted lessons for students to learn how to slaughter animals according to Islamic teachings
There have always been special courses or lessons conducted by schools on halal animal slaughter methods. According to online portal GPS Bestari, Sekolah Menengah Agama Diniah Islamiah in Baling, Kedah had successfully organised a course on the halal method of animal slaughter earlier this year in February.
Muaz Rosli, the secretary of the programme explained that 130 participants, which included teachers, students, staff and the public, were exposed the laws, rules and basic skills regarding animal slaughter.
The special course also allowed participants to take part in a question and answer session as well as a practical session.