'Three-in-one' policy applied to cemeteries

'Three-in-one' policy applied to cemeteries

By T. Sima Gunawan

JAKARTA (JP): More than 100 people die in Jakarta everyday.
Between 80 and 90 of these deaths are officially reported to the
City Cemetery Agency. Ninety percent of the bodies are buried in
the city, while the rest are either sent out of town or cremated.

Due to the limited space in Jakarta's cemeteries, the city
administration has underlined the need to use every inch of land
effectively, by, for example, allowing the burial of three bodies
in one grave.

"We have to put things in order, otherwise the city will be
full of cemeteries," Ayi Achmad, head of the City Cemetery
Agency's information service, said.

The City Cemetery Agency has every right to be concerned. The
city's mortality rate grows as the population increases. In 1985,
for example, the burial rate was 68 a day, last year it surpassed
90.

In the past, tombs and mausoleums could be built on plots of
land, but under the City Ordinance No.2/ 1992, each grave must
now measure exactly 1.5 by 2.5 square meters. A grave can
accommodate a maximum of three bodies. The burial of the second
and third bodies, however, can only be executed at least a year
after the first body is buried.

"We strongly suggest that the heir or heiress of the deceased
use the same grave when another member of the family dies,"
Achmad said in a recent interview with The Jakarta Post.

If anyone wants to use a grave which already contains a body
which is not a member of the family, they will be required to
obtain written consent from the family or relatives of the first
user.

Achmad said the scheme is only implemented where the water
table is low enough, because the last (third) body must be at
least one meter from surface.

"In North Jakarta, the policy can't be applied because the
water table is too close to the surface. Water fills the hole if
you dig more than a meter," Achmad explained.

The government's "three-in-one" burial policy seems to have
gained public support.

"It is a good idea. I don't think anyone will have any
objections being buried with the people they loved," Elvira
Combaitan, an air hostess, commented.

Sri Gustini, a housewife, said her heart sank when she heard
about the regulation for the first time because she envisioned "a
pile of corpses in one grave." As she learned the details,
however, she was relieved and supported its implementation.

"What is important is the approval of the first user of the
grave. If a couple decides to be buried in the same grave, but
one of them dies 10 or 20 years after the other, the government
should leave a space for the one who dies later," she insisted.

Actually, recycling graves isn't new. Although for more
emotional reasons, like a mother wanting her two sons to be
buried in one grave, it has been practiced in Jakarta since the
1960s.

"The right to use a grave is valid for three years. If the
family doesn't extend it, we let others use the grave," Achmad
explained.

He added that there are Indonesians who don't seem to care
much about the graves of deceased family members and do not
extend the right to use the grave. When they visit the cemetery a
few years later, they cannot find the grave because the site has
been used to bury other bodies.

"In such a case, what we can do is to show them where the
original grave is, but we can't move the new bodies," he said.

The city administration charges up to Rp 50,000 to rent a plot
for three years, depending on the location. The longer you rent
the grave, the more you have to pay. For the first three years,
people pay 50 percent of the basic levies. Full payment is
required when the use of the grave is extended for another three
years. A second term costs 150 percent of the basic fees. Each
subsequent extension costs 200 percent of the basic fees. Poor
people, however, don't have to pay.

Services

The City Cemetery Agency also offers various funeral services.
The washing and treatment of a body runs between Rp 50,000 and Rp
75,000, depending on the ritual.

"We charge more for Buddhist rituals because we need arak
putih (white wine) to wash the body," he said.

The agency has 40 hearses available. Inside the city they cost
Rp 12,500 for two hours, while transportation to other towns runs
Rp 600 a kilometer.

Many people, however, have paid more because they didn't know
about the official tariffs and were extorted by middlemen.

Aware of the problem, Achmad called on the public to contact
the cemetery offices in the five mayoralties for the necessary
information.

There are 70 public cemeteries throughout the five
mayoralties, according to Achmad. Eighty percent of the graves
are allocated for Moslems, 15 percent for Christians and five
percent for Hindus and Buddhists.

"In the past, the cemeteries were divided according to race.
There were Dutch cemeteries, Chinese cemeteries, Arab cemeteries
and those for natives," said Achmad.

In 1973 the government grouped graves according to the
deceased's religion in an effort to eliminate racist policies.

The city administration issued a new regulation on cemeteries
in 1992, emphasizing the effective use of space. The regulation
standardizes cemeteries, ruling that each hectare should have
1,600 graves.

The regulation also bans burial outside public cemeteries,
such as house yards, and the construction of mausoleums or tombs.
The use of bricks or concrete when constructing graves is also
prohibited. Only soil, grass and a tombstone are allowed.

"If you want to use a coffin, you are not allowed to use hard
wood, like teak, which is difficult to pulverize," Achmad said.

In addition, people are not allowed to plant trees but
decorative plants no taller than a meter are allowed.

Anyone found violating the regulations can face three months
in prison and/or a Rp 50,000 fine. So far, however, no one has
been charged under the ordinance.

The city administration also plans to make public cemeteries
green areas. Three cemeteries, Karet Bivak, Tanah Kusir and
Pondok Rangon, have been selected as pilot projects.

The 19.8-hectare Karet Bivak cemetery is located on Jl.
Penjernihan in a densely populated area in the heart of Jakarta.
The upgrading project will start soon and has been allocated Rp
2.6 billion (US$1.18 million).

"The renovation of the front of the cemetery is expected to be
completed this year," Achmad said.

There will be a plaza with nice fountains and a lot of trees
in the cemetery, which currently has about 40,000 graves. In the
first stage, more than 3,200 graves will be relocated to other
sites.

"People must understand that everything here must be put in
order. A grave will be relocated if the site is needed for city
development," he said.