Holy cow: Australia’s Liverpool Council abstains from serving beef at interfaith lunch

By NewsGram Staff Writer

Hindu statesman Rajan Zed recently urged Liverpool (a Sydney suburb) City Council to keep beef off the menu of interfaith lunches and dinners.

In an email to the President of Universal Society of Hinduism Rajan Zed; Kiersten Fishburn, Council's Director Community and Culture, wrote back on August 9: "I can assure you that at the recent interfaith lunch beef was not served. We appreciate that many cultures and faiths have particular dietary prohibitions…"

The interfaith lunch, Per Fishburn, held on August 2, was attended by about 500 people.

Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada (USA) on Friday, thanked Liverpool City Council for understanding the concerns of Hindu community, as cow was held sacred by Hindus and was considered the seat of many deities. Consuming beef was considered sacrilegious among Hindus.

Zed had earlier said that with its population increasingly diverse, Liverpool Council should be respectful to all the faith traditions while deciding menu for interfaith lunches and dinners; as purpose of interfaith gatherings was to bring diverse traditions to sit and eat together in fellowship displaying harmonious coexistence.

Rajan Zed had also pointed out that Liverpool Council should walk the talk and seriously follow its own tagline which stated "creating our future together" and its own guiding principle of "We will be fair and just."

According to the Council's website, Liverpool's 40 percent population is born overseas in over 150 countries, with Fiji and India being among the top ten. Liverpool residents speak over 140 different languages and about half of its residents speak language other than English at home (Hindi being among the top ten). Hinduism has increased in Liverpool since 2006.

Ned Mannoun, Gus Ballout and Carl Wulff are Mayor, Deputy Mayor and CEO of City Council of Liverpool, which was "founded" in 1810. Prominent people associated with Liverpool include: cricketer Michael Clarke, Olympic swimmer Michael Wenden, footballer Mark Bosnich and entertainer Nathan Foley.