Author Topic: Dying to get in  (Read 3505 times)

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Offline Maik

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Dying to get in
« on: Sunday, 03 May, 2015 @ 07:12:29 »
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Graveyard overcrowding stokes cremation debate in Greece

Burial in the country's largest cities has long been a temporary measure. A shortage of land means cemeteries in Athens and Thessaloniki are overcrowded.

There are no crematoria in Greece, so grave space has to be recycled. Authorities rent out plots, and a typical lease lasts three years.

When that period has passed, families are recalled to the graveside to witness the removal of the body from the ground. Although grave rental is not entirely uncommon in Europe, Greece's approach is unique.

Relatives can pay to place the bones in a communal storage area known as an ossuary. Others choose to take them to a regional cemetery for reburial, as there is often more space.

If no family member is present at the exhumation, the bones are dug up, dissolved in chemicals and the remnants placed in a common burial plot.

Greece is the only mainland country in the European Union without cremation facilities.

Although the practice was legalised in 2006, attempts to build a crematorium have stalled because of objections from local municipalities and the Greek Orthodox Church.

The Church views cremation as a violation of the human body and forbids its members from reducing their bodies to ash.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-32165261