HJ: Can Muslims use a grave held by another corpse? What are your thoughts of the re-use of graves after 75 years? Are there any precedents for Muslims burials where is a lack of space? MO: In an Islamic perspective, there is dispensation where you can bury one person at different depths in the same burial plot if there is a shortage of land, not many people know this. In Islam, you can bury at the same depth with the condition that the body is fully decomposed. The government does not allow to bury at the same depth for a minimum of 75 years, that’s the law of the land. We, in the Ministry of Justice Burial and Cremation Advisory Group, have been fighting for the past 8 years to reduce that to 50 years. There is a strong incentive for us to do that, so the land is used quicker. There is a strong incentive for us to do that, so the land is used quicker. We, in Gardens of Peace Cemetery, only allow for single interment burials and provide families one generation, which we equate to be roughly 50 years. After 50 years we will go back into the same grave. We currently dig at 6ft, we will dig from 4ft 6in and try to bury without touching the remains, even though it may have not decomposed. Our first burial was in November 2002, so we got until 2037 before we got to recycle any of the graves.
HJ: What is the forward trend for cemeteries? As more cemeteries are becoming privatised MO: In certain places it becomes very dangerous they are even discussions of digging up roads in order to bury somebody. In the advisory group for the ministry of justice; we advise the government in this matter. But at the moment they got other priorities, they always come around and say, “well our priority is to look after the living and rather than looking after the dead�, the councils are saying the same thing creating a big problem. HJ: What is the forward trend for cemeteries? As more cemeteries are becoming privatised MO: The government has always pushed for cremations and alternative burials rather than going in for a normal burial. The only reason why we have been saved is because we are lobbying hard with the Jewish community for traditional burials. At the moment Orthodox Christians and Jews are also the other groups who does not permit cremation, they are fighting with us as well.
Alternatively, there is a gap between the two graves, and we could do it at 4ft6in there also. But that would be left for the next generation, whoever takes over, for them to decide on what is feasible for them to do so.
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