The Sri Lankan Doctors Association has set conditions for burying the bodies of the dead due to the Coronavirus, following objections by Muslims and Christians to the forced burning of bodies in the country.
A report prepared by a committee consisting of 11 doctors and experts stated that burying the bodies of the deceased due to Covid-19 according to certain rules does not pose a threat to human health.
The committee decided that, in addition to cremation, burial can be applied, provided that health procedures are observed, a recommendation that the government is likely to accept to close a sensitive file that has increased tension between the Buddhist majority and the Muslim minority in the country.
The report stated that the committee took into account the standard rules set by international organizations such as the World Health Organization, the United Nations and the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control, in relation to Coronavirus deaths.
The report listed the mandatory conditions for burying the bodies, including the obligation to bury within 24 hours of death and not to hand over the body of the deceased to his family.
The bodies must also be transferred to the cemetery by 4 people at most, and the religious rites of burial should be completed within 10 minutes, in addition to the necessity of burying at a depth of one and a half meters.
