By DANI ROTHWELL
A HALLAM chicken shop has had to defend its halal certification against a Facebook storm – for the second time.
The Facebook row began when an old post from the deleted Islamic Society of Gippsland page was recently shared by the ‘Friends of Q Society of Australia’.
The post read: “ATTN all Melbourne Muslims. Do not eat from chicken delish in hallam (near kfc) as the business has been sold to Chinese non muslims”.
The Friends of Q Society of Australia called the Islamic Society of Gippsland racist for the comments.
An employee of Chick’N D’lish for six years, Salma Sabawi – herself a Muslim – said that when the comments first surfaced it was hurtful.
“We are offended by this, but if people want to come eat, they’ll come eat,” she said.
“If they don’t want to, then they won’t.”
Despite the new owners, the chicken shop has maintained its halal certification and ensure it is renewed every six months.
“We’re certified and if anyone wants to come in, we can show them,” she said.
The initial backlash has mostly been forgotten, with the majority of their Muslim customers returning.
“The new owners bought the shop in December and worked with the old owners for three months,” she said.
“Most of the staff is the same – both of the chefs are Muslim.”
Salma said that halal certification came from the way the animal was ‘sacrificed’. “It’s in an Islamic way,” she said.
But City of Casey Councillor Rosalie Crestani said that this was the issue.
“I go out of my way to eat non-halal food – sometimes it’s very difficult to go to a place that has non-halal food,” Cr Crestani said.
“When they slaughter animals they offer it to Allah – I don’t think that’s honouring my God.
“When I do come across halal food, I pray over it to cancel out the curse on that food.”
Cr Crestani wants to see a well-informed community making decisions about the food they eat.
She calls the halal certification an ‘Islamic tax’ and chooses not to pay it.
“I’ve stripped my cupboard of Vegemite and Cadbury – I thank God there are alternatives and we don’t monopolise the market!” she said.
However, she is concerned about all groups remaining non-violent and respectful in their opinions.
“The word racist is thrown around too much – Islam is an ideology, not a skin colour,” she said.
“We have the responsibility to be careful about what we say – I’m responsible for my own actions.
“Everyone needs to be able to make their own decisions about the food they eat, otherwise it’s some sort of dictatorship and that’s wrong.”
Salma said the shop served anyone who came in and didn’t discriminate.
“It’s a chicken shop, we’re in Australia – anyone is welcome.”
