GABORONE CITY COUNCIL (CEMETERY) BYE-LAWS
(under regulations 34 and 35)
(28th June, 1968)
ARRANGEMENT OF BYE-LAWS
BYE-LAW
1. Citation
2. Interpretation
3. Establishment
4. Burials outside cemetery
5. Permit for burials
6. Burial fees
7. Dimensions of graves
8. Body to be buried in coffin
9. Coffin to be covered
10. Graves to be numbered and burials registered
11. Memorial work
12. Exhumations
13. Restricted number of burials in one grave
14. Hours of opening of cemetery
15. Closing of cemetery
16. Exercise of control by caretaker
17. Offences within a cemetery
18. Penalties
First Schedule
Second Schedule – Burial Permit (Sesupo Sa Phitlho)
S.I. 54, 1968,
S.I. 56, 1997.
These Bye-laws may be cited as the Gaborone City 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Originally made under the Township Act now repealed, these regulations have been continued under s 94(2) of the Local Government Act, 2013.
In these Bye-laws, unless the context otherwise requires
“adult”, in relation to a deceased person, means a person other than a child;
“caretaker” means the person designated as such by the council;
“cemetery” means cemetery established under the provisions of bye-law 3;
“child” means a child under the age of 10 years;
“City Clerk” means the City Clerk of Gaborone;
“Council” means the City Council of Gaborone;
“memorial work” includes any gravestone, monument, cenotaph, tablet or monumental inscription and any work ancillary thereto.
The areas of land defined in the First Schedule are established as cemeteries for the purposes of these Bye-laws.
No person shall bury or cause to be buried any body elsewhere than in a cemetery.
(1) No burial shall take place in a cemetery except under, and in accordance with, a permit issued by the City Clerk and on payment of the fees prescribed in bye-law 6.
(2) The permit shall be in the form set out in the Second Schedule.
(3) A person making application for a permit shall state
(a) the name, age and sex of the deceased;
(b) the religious denomination, if any, of the deceased;
(c) the place of death,
and his application shall be accompanied by a certificate of the cause of death signed by a medical practitioner or a duly certified copy thereof or, in the absence of such certificate, by the written permission of a magistrate authorising the burial.
(4) The City Clerk may refuse the issue of a permit where the deceased died outside the city area and was not, prior to his death, a resident of the city.
(1) There shall be charged for the issue of a permit in accordance with the provisions of bye-law 5 burial fees of
(a) P10,00 in the case of the burial of an adult;
(b) P6,00 in the case of the burial of a child:
Provided that the City Clerk may waive the payment of such fees in the whole or in part where he is satisfied that the person responsible for the burial is unable to pay the full amount and may, additionally or alternatively, make arrangements for the payment of the fee in instalments; and, in the event of any failure to comply with the terms and conditions of payment imposed by the City Clerk the outstanding balance owing shall forthwith be a debt due to the Council and shall be recoverable in a court of competent jurisdiction.
(2) In the event of a child’s coffin being too large for a child’s grave as prescribed in bye-law 7 and if, as a result, it is placed in an adult’s grave, burial fees shall be paid at the rate prescribed for the burial of an adult.
(1) Graves shall be of the following dimensions
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(a) in the case of an adult- |
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length |
2,128 m
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width |
0,912 m
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depth |
1,824 m
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(b) in the case of a child- |
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length |
1,524 m
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width |
0,912 m
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depth |
1,524 m.
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(2) A person making application for a permit in accordance with the provisions of bye-law 5(3) shall notify the City Clerk in the event of any coffin being of dimensions greater than those prescribed in sub-bye-law (1)(a) and, in such event, an additional burial fee of P1 shall be payable.
8. Body to be buried in coffin
Unless the City Clerk otherwise directs no burial shall take place unless the body of the deceased is enclosed in a coffin of solid and sound construction.
The person who is responsible for the burial shall forthwith upon placing the body in a grave cover it with earth until the grave is full.
10. Graves to be numbered and burials registered
(1) All graves in a cemetery shall be allotted a number and all burials shall be registered in a register book which shall be kept by the City Clerk.
(2) The register kept under the provisions of sub-bye-law (2) may be inspected by members of the public during office hours on payment of a fee of 25 thebe.
(1) No person may erect on any grave any memorial work without the permission in writing of the City Clerk and in accordance with such permission.
(2) Any person making application to the City Clerk for permission to erect any memorial work shall, if required to do so, furnish to the City Clerk plans or diagrams thereof in such degree of detail as he may specify and shall supply such details as the City Clerk may require as to the manner in which the work is to be executed.
(3) The City Clerk may refuse to grant permission for the erection of any other memorial work if he is of the opinion that the memorial work would be unsightly or offensive or if it is not of a permanent and durable nature:
Provided that any person aggrieved by any decision of the City Clerk under the provisions of this sub-bye-law may appeal to the Council.
(4) The Council may take down and remove any memorial work which has been placed or erected within a cemetery without their authority or which is not maintained in an adequate state of repair and any cost incurred by the Council in so doing may be recovered from the person who erected the work.
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 reopen any grave without the consent of the Council.
13. Restricted number of burials in one grave
Not more than one adult, or two children may be buried in any grave:
Provided that the body of a still-born child may be buried with the body of its mother.
14. Hours of opening of cemetery
A cemetery shall be open to the public between the hours of 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.:
Provided that
(a) nothing in this section shall authorise members of the public to enter any building or enclosed space within a cemetery;
(b) children, unless accompanied by a responsible adult, may be excluded from a cemetery.
The council may by resolution close any cemetery; but any cemetery so closed shall continue to be a cemetery except that no burial may take place therein except on the authority of the council.
16. Exercise of control by caretaker
(1) Every person within a cemetery shall be subject to the direction and control of the caretaker who may, in addition, give such reasonable directions as he thinks fit for the arrangements of funerals and for the times and manner in which work within the cemetery is to be performed.
(2) No person shall resist or obstruct the caretaker in the execution of his duties or disobey any direction given under the provisions of sub-bye-law (1).
17. Offences within a cemetery
No person shall
(a) without the consent of the City Clerk or the caretaker be in any cemetery other than during the hours when the cemetery is open under the provisions of bye-law 14;
(b) destroy or injure any building, wall or fence in the cemetery or destroy or injure any tree or plant therein;
(c) put up any bill in any cemetery or any wall thereof;
(d) within a cemetery destroy, injure or deface any memorial work;
(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 within a cemetery;
(h) within a cemetery shout or scream or behave in an indecent or immodest manner;
(i) enter a cemetery which is enclosed by a fence or wall other than through a gate or door; or
(j) allow any dog or livestock within the cemetery.
Any person contravening the provisions of these Bye-laws shall be guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding P15,00.
FIRST SCHEDULE
That piece of land known as the old cemetery, being presently Lot 1755.
That piece of land known as the new cemetery, being presently Lot 4688.
SECOND SCHEDULE
BURIAL PERMIT
SESUPO SA PHITLHO
(bye-law 5(2))
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No.: ………………………………………….. Nomore:……………………………………… |
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GABORONE CITY COUNCIL |
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Name of Applicant: ……………………………………………………………………….. (Full Name) Address of Applicant: ……………………………………………………………………………………. Aterese ya Mokopi: ……………………………………………………………………………………… Name of Deceased: ……………………………………………………………………………………… Leina la Moswi: …………………………………………………………………………………………… Address of Deceased: …………………………………………………………………………………… Aterese ya Moswi: ……………………………………………………………………………………….. Date of Death: ……………………………………………………………………………………………. Letsatsi la Loso: …………………………………………………………………………………………. Place of Death: ………………………………………………………………………………………….. Felo ga Loso: ……………………………………………………………………………………………. Death Certificate: ……………………………………………………………………………………….. Sesupo sa Loso: ……………………………………………………………………………………….. Age: …………………… Dingwaga: ……………. Sex: ………………….. Ke Mong: …………….. * Religious Denomination: ………………………………………………………………………….. ** Wa Kereke Efe: …………………………………………………………………………………….. I certify that the information given above is true in every respect. |
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………………………………………… ……………………………………….. |
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Fee: ………………………. |
Official Receipt No: ………………………………. |
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Grave Number: …………………………….. |
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………………………………………….. Date: …………………………………………….. Letsatsi: |
*>The question need not be answered.
**>Potso e ga e patelesege go arabiwa.>