Bid to exhume infected corpse dismissed

Relatives of a Kenyan man who died shortly after the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic in that country, have been to court asking that his hurriedly-buried body be exhumed, tested for Covid-19 and then re-buried according to proper traditional rites. They complained that during a late-night burial, the body of James Onyango was put into a shallow grave wrapped in a plastic bag, while a ‘battalion of police officers’ and local government officials surrounded the family house. This was contrary to custom, and had caused stigma in their traditional village, writes Carmel Rickard in her A Matter of Justice column on the Legalbrief site. Government authorities, however, said post-mortem tests showed that Onyango had Covid-19 and he had been buried according to the practice prevalent in April, with very few people attending and as quickly as possible. The family said they were particularly worried that wild animals could dig up the body as it was not buried in a coffin, nor in a grave of the normal depth. They also claimed that the dead man had a right to human dignity, ‘even in death’. In a lengthy judgment, Judge Rosemary Aburili concluded that exhumation was not advised, given the health hazards involved, but she ordered that the grave site be properly cemented to prevent animals from digging it up. She also spoke about the fear and stigma involved, even at present, if someone was suspected of having Covid-19. Such a person was ‘surrounded by an army of public health officials, accompanied by heavy security or enforcement teams, captured like a stray monkey (and) taken to quarantine at the suspect’s own cost'.