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The disturbing news about systemic and institutional corruption in the halal meat industry by a cartel comprising foreign exporters with the alleged connivance of four government agencies is a provocative reminder of how entrenched such a culture is in Malaysia ("MACC probing 'halal' meat smuggling cartel case").
What’s truly shocking is the corruption not only subverted routine bureaucratic procedures but also the Islamic core injunction of halal food, particularly with regards to the prescribed ritual slaughter of meat for consumption by Muslims according to the fundamental tenets of the faith – and it was enabled by government officers who presumably are themselves Muslims to boot.
