Funeral racism rife - SACC
2005-11-02 19:31
Johannesburg - Racism in the funeral industry is still rife, said the SA Council of Churches (on Wednesday.
SACC spokesperson the Rev Jo Ndhlela said the council was aware that some funeral parlours used separate burial facilities for black and white corpses.
"We understand there are fridges where only white people are kept.
"This can never be tolerated.
"On the other hand, black undertakers do not want to bury white people," said Ndhlela, speaking at the SACC seminar on the ethics of funerals.
Racism in the industry came under the spotlight when the SACC and the United Funeral Association of SA (Ufasa) called on the government to regulate the industry.
It also came to light that some funeral parlours charged exorbitant fees to bury people.
In one instance, steel caskets worth R2 500 were sold for R25 000.
Ufasa founder member Johan Rousseau said he knew of racist funeral parlours in several areas around Johannesburg.
"Some parlours even have two offices in one town - one for blacks and one for whites."
The SACC said it would confront the government to speedily put measures in place to reverse what soon could become a crisis.
- SAPA