LOCAL GOVERNMENT : SUBSIDIARY LEGISLATION : CENTRAL DISTRICT COUNCIL (CEMETERY) BYE-LAWS

CENTRAL DISTRICT COUNCIL (CEMETERY) BYE-LAWS

(section 33)

(26th September, 2008)

ARRANGEMENT OF BYE-LAWS

BYE-LAW

1. Citation

2. Interpretation

3. Establishment

4. Application

5. Burials in cemetery

6. Permits for burials

7. Application for burial permits

8. Fees

9. Dimensions of grave

10. Body to be buried in coffin

11. Coffin to be covered

12. Graves to be numbered and burials registered

13. Digging of graves

14. Restrictions on erection of memorial works on graves

15. Exhumations and re-opening of graves

16. Restricted number of bodies in one grave

17. Hours of opening of cemetery

18. Closing of cemetery

19. Exercise of control by caretaker

20. Offences within cemetery

21. Penalties

Schedules

S.I. 83, 2008.

1. Citation

These Bye-Laws may be cited as the Central District Council (Cemetery) Bye-Laws*.

*Originally made under the Township Act now repealed, these regulations have been continued under s 94(2) of the Local Government Act, 2013.

2. Interpretation

In these Bye-Laws, unless the context otherwise requires

“authorised official” means the Council Secretary or any employee of the Council duly authorised;

“caretaker” means the person designated as such by the Council and employed under the Unified Local Government Service Act (Cap. 40:06);

“cemetery” means any designated area established as a cemetery under bye-law 3;

“child” means a person below the age of 10 years;

“Council” means the Central District Council;

“council area” means the area of jurisdiction of the Central District Council;

“memorial work” means any gravestone, monument epitaph, tablet or monumental inscription and any work ancillary thereto; and

“village areas” means any village area under the Central District Council.

3. Establishment

The Council shall establish, designate and identify areas within the jurisdiction of the Council as cemeteries.

4. Application

These Bye-Laws are applicable to all village areas under the jurisdiction of the Council.

5. Burials in cemetery

No person shall bury or cause to be buried, a body in a place other than in a cemetery.

6. Permits for burials

(1) No person shall bury or cause to be buried, a body in a cemetery unless a permit for the burial of that body has been issued by the Council or the caretaker of the cemetery and upon payment of the fees prescribed under bye-law 8.

(2) The permit shall be in the form set out in the First Schedule.

(3) A person making an application for a permit shall state

(a) the name, age and sex of the deceased;

(b) the religious denomination, if any, of the deceased;

(d) the relationship of the applicant to the deceased.

7. Application for burial permits

(1) Every application for a burial permit under this bye-law, shall be accompanied by a

(a) death certificate signed by a medical practitioner or a copy thereof, certified to be a true copy by an administrative officer or other responsible person, or a letter certifying the deceaseds death from the Chief, Headman or senior tribesman of the tribal territory; or

(b) written sanction of a magistrate or administrative officer authorising the burial.

8. Fees

(1) Subject to this bye-law, the fees specified in the Second Schedule, shall be paid for every burial permit issued.

(2) Where the Council or authorised official is satisfied that any fee payable under these bye-laws cannot, by any reason, be paid he or she may

(a) waive the fee either wholly or in part;

(b) direct that the fee, or so much of the fee that he or she has not waived under paragraph (a), shall be paid in instalments of such amounts and at such times as he or she shall specify; or

9. Dimensions of grave

Unless where the Council otherwise directs, no person shall bury or cause to be buried a body in a cemetery unless the grave has the dimensions specified in the Third Schedule.

10. Body to be buried in coffin

No person shall bury or cause to be buried a body in a cemetery unless the body is enclosed in a coffin of solid and sound construction:

Provided that the burial of a body is in accordance with well-known and accepted religious rites or traditions of the deceaseds religion and faith.

11. Coffin to be covered

The caretaker responsible for the cemetery shall ensure that forthwith upon the placing of the coffin or body in a grave it is covered with earth until the grave is filled.

12. Graves to be numbered and burials registered

(1) Every grave in a cemetery shall be allocated a number and the particulars of every burial shall be recorded in a register kept by the Council Secretary or an authorised official.

(2) The register referred to in sub-bye-law (1), may be inspected by members of the public during office hours.

13. Digging of graves

It shall be the responsibility of the Council in designated cemetery areas, to dig graves, upon receipt of payment of fees in accordance with the provisions of bye-law 8:

Provided that the Council Secretary may waive the payment of such fees in whole or in part, where a person responsible for a burial wishes to dig the grave himself and such person can only do so after receiving authorisation from the Council Secretary and making an undertaking to abide by the specified conditions of the digging of graves as provided under bye-law 8 and as may be fixed from time to time by the Council.

14. Restrictions on erection of memorial works on graves

(1) No person shall erect on any grave, any memorial work without the written permission of the Council Secretary and the erection shall be carried out in accordance with the permission and the provisions of bye-law 9.

(2) Any person making an application to the Council Secretary for permission to erect any memorial work shall, if required to do so, furnish the Council Secretary with plans or diagrams thereof in such degree of detail as to the manner in which the work is to be executed, as may be required by the Council Secretary.

(3) The Council Secretary may refuse to grant permission for the erection of any memorial work if he or she is of the opinion that the memorial work would be unsightly or offensive or if it would not be of a permanent and durable nature:

Provided that any person aggrieved by any decision of the Council Secretary may appeal to the Minister.

(4) The Council may take down and remove any memorial work erected on a grave within a cemetery without authorisation or which is not maintained in an adequate state of repair and any costs incurred by the Council in so doing, may be recovered from the person who erected the work.

15. Exhumations and re-opening of graves

Subject to the provisions of the Inquests Act (Cap. 07:01), no person shall exhume or cause any body to be exhumed within a cemetery or re-open any grave without the consent of the Council.

16. Restricted number of bodies in one grave

No person shall bury or cause to be buried in one grave, more than one body of a person who is not a child or more than two bodies of children, unless the written permission of the Council Secretary has been granted:

Provided that the body of a still-born child may be buried with the body of its mother in one grave without permission being sought as provided under this bye-law.

17. Hours of opening of cemetery

(1) A cemetery shall be open to the public between 5.30 am and 6.30 pm:

Provided that

(i) the Council Secretary or an authorised official or the caretaker of the cemetery may from time to time authorise an earlier opening or a later closing of the cemetery;

(ii) nothing in this bye-law shall authorise members of the public to enter any building or enclosed space within the cemetery; and

(iii) children, unless accompanied by a responsible adult may be excluded from the cemetery.

18. Closing of cemetery

The Council may close any cemetery, but any cemetery so closed shall continue to be a cemetery except that no burial may take place therein unless authorisation from the Council is sought.

19. Exercise of control by caretaker

(1) Every person within a cemetery shall be subject to the directions and control of the caretaker of the cemetery.

(2) The caretaker of a cemetery may give such reasonable directions as he or she thinks fit for the arrangement of funerals.

(3) No person shall resist or obstruct the caretaker of a cemetery in the execution of his or her duties or disobey any lawful directions given by the caretaker.

20. Offences within cemetery

No person shall

(a) without the consent of the Council Secretary or the caretaker be in any cemetery other than during the hours when the cemetery is open under the provisions of bye-law 17;

(b) destroy or damage any building, wall, fence, tree or plant within a cemetery;

(d) destroy or damage any memorial work within the cemetery;

(e) within a cemetery, play any game or sport;

(f) within a cemetery, discharge any firearm except at a military funeral;

(g) disturb or annoy any person attending any funeral in a cemetery;

(h) shout, scream or behave in a disorderly, indecent, immodest or irreverent manner in or immediately adjacent to a cemetery;

(i) enter a cemetery which is enclosed by a fence or wall other than through a gate or door;

(j) permit or allow any dog or livestock to enter or remain in any cemetery;

(k) smoke tobacco or any unauthorised or prohibited drugs in a cemetery;

(l) drink alcoholic beverages in a cemetery; or

(m) litter in the cemetery.

21. Penalties

(1) Any person contravening the provisions of these Bye-Laws shall be guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding P1,000 or in default of payment to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months or to both.

(2) In the event of a second or subsequent conviction, a person shall be liable to a fine not exceeding P2,000 or in default of payment, to a term of imprisonment not exceeding one year or to both.

FIRST SCHEDULE

(bye-law 6(2))

PART I

BURIAL PERMIT

Burial Permit Number ………………………………………………………………………………………………….
(Nomoro ya phitlho)

PARTICULARS OF APPLICANT

Name of Applicant …………………………………………. Identity/Omang……………………………………
(Leina la mokopi)

Address of Applicant ……………………………………….. Location …………………………………………..
(Aterese yaMokopi)

PARTICULARS OF DECEASED

Name of Deceased………………………………………………………………………………………………………
(Leina laMoswi)

Place of death ………………………………………………………..Date of death………………………………..
(Felo ga loso) (Letsatsi la loso)

National Identity of the Deceased ……………………………………………………………………………….
(Omang/Passport)

Death Certificate or letter (issued where and by whom and when ………………………………
(Sesupo sa loso)

Location of burial ………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
(Felo ga phitho)

Relationship to the deceased person by the applicant ………………………………………………

Age………………………………. Sex…………………………………………………..
(Dingwaga) (Bong)

* Religious Denomination …………………………………………………………………………………………..
(*Kereke/Tumelo)

I certify that the information given is true in every respect.
(Mafoko otlhe a ke a buileng ke boammaruri).

………………………………………………………..
Signature of Applicant
(Boitlamo jwa mokopi)

>* The question need not be answered
* (Ga o patelesege go araba potso e)

PART II

FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY.
(GaTiriso ya Babereki fela)

Death Registration Number …………………………………………………….. Fee………………………….
(Nomoro ya loso) (Tuelo)

Official Receipt Number………………………………………………………………………………………………
(Nomoro ya sesupo sa tuelo)

Grave Number……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
(Nomoro ya Lebitla )

PART III

BURIAL PERMIT
(TESELETSO YA PHITHO)

Burial is hereby permitted
(Phitho e letleletswe)

……………………………………………….
Council Secretary/Caretaker
(Mokwaledi wa khansele/motlhokomedi)

Date …………………………………………..
(Letsatsi)

SECOND SCHEDULE

(bye-law 8)

BURIAL FEES

(a) P10 in the case of the burial of an adult.

(b) P5 in the case of the burial of a child.

THIRD SCHEDULE

(bye-law 9)

DIMENSIONS OF GRAVES

(a) In the case of an adult

Length 2.128m

Width 0.912m

Depth 1.824m

(b) In the case of a child

Length 1.524m

Width 0.912m

Depth 1.524m