From Sardar Shahab
LONDON: Muslims will be forced to cremate the dead bodies of their loved ones if the new Coronavirus Bill is approved by the British Parliament. Cremation of dead bodies is against the values of the Islamic faith and has caused an outcry across the Muslim community in the UK.
According to the draft, SCHEDULE 27, Part 2 relating to “disposal of bodies which includes removal of the deceased’s wishes and enforced cremations”, Muslims will be forced to go against their religious values of burying their dead.
Labour’s Naz Shah MP has opposed this section of the bill and is currently lobbying other MPs to help protect the religious values of both Muslims and Jews of the UK. She said, “I am aware that there is concern in regard to burials, especially from those from religious communities.
I have tabled with cross-party colleagues an Amendment to the Emergency Coronavirus Bill, to ensure if local authorities reach their capacity, they do not proceed to cremate the deceased from faith backgrounds automatically, without the consultation of family/legal guardians and/or local faith institutions.
This will be particularly pertinent to Muslim and Jewish communities whose faiths strongly oppose cremation.”
