Jakarta graves left left for dead<\/p>\n
By Annastashya Emmanuelle<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): For many Jakartans "dead and buried" literally
\nmeans being forgotten, as nearly half the graves in the city are
\nreportedly neglected.<\/p>\n
Data from the city's Public Cemetery Agency shows that about
\n50 percent of graves in the 96 public cemeteries across the
\ncapital are neglected by families of the deceased.<\/p>\n
According to city officials, families often do not even bother
\nextending the three-year lease for the grave of their departed
\nkin.<\/p>\n
Deputy chief of the control and counseling division of the
\nagency, Abdillah, said that financial reasons were often cited as
\nthe primary reason, as well as living relatives moving out of
\ntown.<\/p>\n
Mohammad Sirin, head of Menteng Pulo cemetery in South
\nJakarta, said, "most (relatives) said they were unable to pay the
\ngrave lease."<\/p>\n
"But I think there are also people who simply don't care about
\ntheir deceased. The fee is not that expensive," Sirin added.<\/p>\n
City Bylaw No. 3\/1999 stipulates that the fees range from Rp
\n4,000 (43 U.S. cents) to Rp 100,000 (US$11) for a 3-year period,
\ndepending on the location of the grave.<\/p>\n
"It's like in real estate, the closer it is to the marketing
\noffice, the more expensive it is," Sirin said jokingly.<\/p>\n
From about 51,000 graves in the 32 hectare Menteng Pulo
\ncemetery, up to half of the leases have expired or graves are
\nunkempt.<\/p>\n
The cemetery office will send three notifications to family
\nmembers within three months of a lease's expiry. If the lease is
\nnot renewed, the grave sites are usually "remarketed".<\/p>\n
The remains of the grave's previous occupant are placed at the
\nfeet of the new occupant of the grave.<\/p>\n
"This way, family members of the previous occupant of the
\ngrave can easily move their family member's remains should they
\nwish to reclaim them," Sirin explained.<\/p>\n
If a family already has a close relative buried in the
\ncemetery, the office would also suggest that the remains of the
\nnewly departed be stacked above the previous one in order to save
\nspace.<\/p>\n
"Therefore, the family would only have to pay for one grave
\ninstead of two," Sirin said, adding that the first deceased must
\nhave been buried for at least one year before adding another
\nfamily member.<\/p>\n
Apart from the abandoned graves, many of the sites in Menteng
\nPulo cemetery are currently being moved as a result of the city
\nadministration's decision to develop a public park at the front
\nsides of the cemetery, which is divided by Jl. Casablanca.<\/p>\n
Graves located within 10 meters from the street are being
\nmoved to abandoned graves further inside the Menteng Pulo
\ncemetery, or to the Kampung Kandang cemetery in North Jakarta.<\/p>\n
"Since Jl. Casablanca is one of Jakarta's main roads, it is
\nunsightly to have graves along the street. Therefore, we're going
\nto transform the first 10 meters of the graveyard adjacent to the
\nstreet into a park," Abdillah told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
As many as 1,003 graves are being moved, of which 858 have
\nreportedly been abandoned.<\/p>\n
There will be no charge for family members who's relative's
\ngraves are moved and they are free to either relocate their
\ndeceased kin further inside Menteng Pulo cemetery or to Kampung
\nKandang cemetery.<\/p>\n
One visitor to the cemetery, Suparni, who's mother was buried
\nin Menteng Pulo in 1979, believes the arrangement is quite fair.<\/p>\n
"Since they are covering all the expenses, I don't think our
\nfamily would have a problem with it," she said.<\/p>\n
"(But) we're going to discuss it with the rest of the family
\nfirst before deciding," she added.<\/p>\n
Suparni and her siblings were inspecting the location of the
\nnew grave site on Monday after they read about the city's plan in
\nthe newspaper.<\/p>",
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