GRAVE robbers making off with aluminium memorial plaques from headstones at a cemetery in Jid Al Haj have sparked outrage in the local community.
Councillors have alleged that illegal expatriate workers were raiding the graves to search for metals that they could resell.
A video clip circulating on social media yesterday showed several headstones with the memorial plaques missing.
The plaques are placed on headstones by family members and contain Quran verses and details of the deceased in Arabic.
According to area councillor Dr Sayed Shubbar Al Wedaei this was a serious offence infringing on the sanctity of graves.
“We are facing a problem with undocumented workers who are spreading these invasive practices which are alien to our culture, traditions and beliefs,” he told the GDN.
“The theft of metallic material is not a new phenomenon as there have been previous incidents of aluminium taps being stolen with vehicles roaming around villages looking to pillage these graves.
“This is a parasitic phenomenon that has nothing to do with our culture because even our delinquents would never desecrate the sanctity of graves like this because they understand the sanctity of burial sites.”
According to Dr Al Wedaei, a multi-pronged approach bringing together multiple authorities was necessary to tackle such incidents and prevent their repetition or spread.
He added that strict legal action must be taken against perpetrators caught robbing graves.
“As Muslims there is a spirituality regarding graves and these crimes have a severe mental and psychological impact on the families of those whose graves have been robbed,” he added.
“This is a violation of the people’s rights and it must be eradicated through joint efforts between the media and government authorities.
“More awareness must be raised through religious platforms as well since this is a serious infraction that must not be taken lightly.”
Dr Al Wedaei highlighted the importance of also deploying guards at graveyard to protect these sites to ensure any more thefts don’t occur.
He added that more community awareness was necessary.
He also stressed that ‘if left untackled this incident could spread to other graveyards across the kingdom’.
“This is a serious issue that must be eradicated immediately before it turns into a national phenomenon,” said a family member of a robbed grave on condition of anonymity.
“We place these plaques on the graves for better identification and these expatriates have stolen them to resell them as scrap material – which is just unbelievable.
“It’s an openly disrespectful crime that is offensive to the entire Bahraini community as it involves desecrating graves which is prohibited.
“It’s like our family member died twice and the pain we feel due to this disrespectful violation is indescribable.”
reem@gdnmedia.bh
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