General Chat

If they do and you can't, someone else will give it a go I am sure. We'll get the damn petition going one way or the other, or wait and see if they decide it would be feasible to use it and try to submit plans to parliament...

One way or the other, we'll do it. Don't worry.

I shall padlock myself to the gates, if it would help:-) BC

OK once again I will stress, the issue here is not race or religion, and here's why.

Tower Hamlets Council are looking for an area to be a new cemetary within the borough. currently there is no working burial ground there and people are having to bury their loved ones miles away.

Everyone, regardless of race or creed, needs to have somewhere to bury their dead.

It is ILLEGAL to have a single faith cemetary. All working cemetaries are now multi-faith, with different areas set aside for different faiths. This works very very well.

Any new cemetary in the borough will also be multi-faith, to keep within the law.

Therefore Christians will be buried in the Christian area, Muslims in the Muslim area, Jewish in the Jewish area and so on, as in all other burial grounds.

But....to make way for new burials in the existing cemetary which has been full since 1966, remains will be dug up. THIS is the issue at stake here, NOT race or religion. Us and them has nothing to do with it.

Merlin, councils in other areas have destroyed cemetaries and built flats or offices or car parks on them, some of these are predominantly Christian councils, in predominantly Christian areas, so again I stress that this has nothing to do with race or religion.

Where money is concerned some councils, whatever their majority religion or race, will stop at nothing.

In this instance I think money may be concerned again, as it will probably cost more to clear and prepare the old gas works, than to dig up the bones of our ancestors in the existing cemetary.

What else is a feasibility study if not looking into the costs?

But then again, to some, money is religion.

Well done Lou and thank you.

Can I also add here that there is a group on facebook set up in protest about this, at

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=5554299474

just copy and paste into your address bar.

Teresa, I have also added to the petition, I am not religious but I do feel that those laid to rest should stay just that.

Gillie XX

Absolutely shocking!!!!!!

From the Daily Telegraph 7/6/2007

Graves are to be reopened to allow bodies to be stacked one on top of another in a controversial move announced by the Government yesterday.

A consultation last year found that most people
would accept 'double-decker' graves

Bodies buried for as little as 75 years could be dug up and re-buried in deeper ground to allow another coffin to be interred above.

The name of the newly-buried person could even be added to the headstone.

This follows Government research which found that cemeteries and graveyards will be full within 30 years.

The decision is likely to unsettle religious groups concerned about the sanctity of burial grounds and charities for the bereaved.

Under the scheme, remains will be exhumed and re-interred at a deeper level in a smaller container or casket. A new coffin could then be lowered into the original space and the names of the newly buried added to the existing tombstone or to new plaques.

Permission to dig up the remains would be given only if there were no objections from descendants of the dead, if they can be tracked down.

Families who object to a relative's grave being re-used will be allowed to defer the exhumation for "at least" a generation.

advertisementCouncils would normally only select graves that were untended, suggesting that they were not visited, and were 100 years old or more.

But the Ministry of Justice said there could be case for 75-year-old graves being used where the pressure of space was very great.

Under the present laws, graves can be re-used so long as the original coffin is left undisturbed. Experts have warned that, without urgent action, the country will soon face a serious problems burying its dead, but ministers see the issue as a "political taboo".

In a written statement yesterday, Harriet Harman, the justice minister, said: "The Government is now satisfied that it would be right to enable graves to be re-used, subject to appropriate safeguards."

Council officials welcomed the plan, saying it would make cemeteries "sustainable".

While there are about 350,000 cremations a year, there are still 150,000 burials.

Three inner-London cemeteries have already closed their gates and 16 boroughs in the capital will be at capacity within five to 15 years. Many others across the country are almost full

It is expected that councils will be required to place advertisements in local newspapers, put notices at cemeteries and write to relatives' last known addresses.

A consultation last year found that most people would accept "double-decker" graves, though a significant minority remained opposed.

The Church of England said yesterday that it had no theological objections so long as the process was carried out sensitively and after consultation with relatives.

A similar view is taken by the Roman Catholic Church, and the Muslim Council of Britain has said such burials would not conflict with Islam.

Rabbi Jonathan Romain, of the Maidenhead Synagogue, Berks, said that in the Jewish community there was "a general reluctance" to disturb the dead. "But if there is nowhere else to be bury the newly dead then space must be maximised for succeeding generations."

can we contact david bellamy????????

Why not Joyous! Great Idea.

will go lookxx

oh cool,also when i typed in his name the consevation site came up.......help.wot do i say.xxxx

Also very interesting reading, too long to put on here, is a House of Commons report on the reuse of graves.

http://www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk/pa/cm200001/cmselect/cmenvtra/91/9110.htm

I have signed, but I just could not find the spot!!
So , a very kind lady signed it in my name for me!

Thank you Lisa.x

And Merlin, I completely agree with you.
in this particular case.... free speech is considered *racist*.
And I am not racist, and never have been.
Deanna X

To further emphasise what I said about race being nothing to do with this, I have posted a couple of older reports regarding reuse of graves, due to a shortage of burial space. This is nationwide, not just in our cities. Burial space is a diminishing resource, and it is very much favoured by national and local governments alike, and even the Church of England that graves be reused in a stacked form up to 10 times.

Just google 'graves to be reused' to see the results.

There are apparently 350,000 cremations per year, but still 150,000 burials. Not everybody wants to be cremated, and it is true that it would be in opposition to some religious rules...as much as I dont' want to bring that into it.

Cremation is the obvious answer...I am certainly going to be cremated. My OH wishes to be buried.

This is NOT about racism! It is about history, people's feelings and caring. The cemetery is a unique haven for wildlife and a tiny green wilderness in an urban setting that is a unique peaceful place for people of any faith to enjoy. There are very few of those around in any city. A lot of people take a great deal of trouble to look after the place for others to use.
"Welcome to the best kept secret in Tower Hamlets!
BBC Documentary On Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park
Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park is a little bit of the countryside in amongst the tower blocks and old Victorian streets in East London. There is an interesting history of the park from the opening of the cemetery in 1841, to when it was closed for graves in 1966, right up to 2001, when it was designated part of Tower Hamlets' first Local Nature Reserve.
There are environmental education workshops which take place in the Soanes Centre classroom, just inside the main entrance on Southern Grove. The Friends of Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park publish a newsletter every two months, called Stone Stories, in which events and reports about activities can be found. We have a discussion board for talking about what's going on in the park.Don't miss out on this unique sanctuary for people and wildlife. This site is updated regularly, so please use the site to find out more. Come and give us a visit. Many people visit to look for their ancestors. The main paths and pond are accessible for wheelchair users"
Courtesy of the BBC
-and that is only one of the many articles about the cemetary on the net. I have no connection with it at all but to destroy such a place would be totally insensitive and downright stupid.

Nudge nudge, which will be deleted later.
x

Nudge again....


Has this sort of thing already happened in your area? ie, has your local (full) cemetary been flattened and used for developement? If so, where and when did this happen.

Well done everyone, we have the first 100 signatures on the petition.

We still need more, please don't sit back and say 'what good can we do?'