This archive report was first published on 21 May 2020.
As the number of Covid-19 deaths continues to rise in Kenya, with 50 deaths recorded so far, experts are calling on the government to come up with guidelines that will ensure that the dead are given their last respects.
According to Dr. Richard Ayah, a health systems and policy expert, the government has violated the dignity of the dead by rushing to bury people at night, often without allowing families to have a say in the burials.
“Being buried at night is synonymous with being buried like a thief. Everybody is entitled to a decent burial and families have a right to mourn,” Dr. Ayah said.
Dr. Ayah pointed out that the World Health Organisation (WHO) has guidelines that recommend that relatives should not touch or kiss the body, but that does not mean the body should be treated with disrespect.
Prof. Lukoye Atwoli, an associate professor at Moi University's School of Medicine and the vice-president of the Kenya Medical Association, also expressed concern over the manner in which Covid-19 victims are being buried.
“Whereas we agree that the deceased should be buried as fast as possible within 48 hours, we shouldn’t engage in a process that increases stigma like rushing to bury people at night,” Prof. Atwoli said.
Dr. Ayah noted that very few health officials have been trained on how to carry out a dignified burial, and that the government should incorporate the expertise of sociologists to come up with proper guidelines that factor in the cultural aspects of the people.
“In Kenya, I think it’s only the military that know how to perform these ceremonies. The government is never involved in burials, so very few people have the technical know-how,” Dr. Ayah added.
On April 3, the Ministry of Health came up with regulations stating that burial and cremation ceremonies should be conducted between 9am and 3pm. However, on April 6, a Kenya Gazette Special Issue Supplement No. 41 stated that where a person infected with Covid-19 dies, the body shall be interred or cremated within 48 hours from the time of death.
Director-General of Health Patrick Amoth recently insisted that the ministry had customised the WHO guidelines which outline how Covid-19 victims should be buried, but noted that the rushed burials conducted at night have been carried out in counties which are still ill-prepared.
