Kyrgyzstan Enacts Law Banning Cremation of Human Remains

President Sadyr Japarov has signed a bill into law that bans the cremation of human remains in Kyrgyzstan, the presidential office announced on Tuesday. The law removes provisions that previously permitted cremation—the burning of bodies—as well as the burial and reburial of urns containing ashes. According to the authorities, the legislation aims to tighten legal regulations concerning funerals and to distinguish between ritual services and sanitary-technical procedures involving biological material. Under the newly enacted law, crematoriums may only be used for the destruction of human tissues and organs resulting from medical activities. The burning of bodies, including aborted or stillborn foetuses, is now prohibited. The law will take effect ten days after its official promulgation.