Concerns about Jewish post mortem delays are allayed

PETER FELDMAN

That is especially because post mortem examinations, where a death is considered to be due to unnatural causes, were not performed and burials had to be put on hold because of the situation.

The protest began in Johannesburg on June 8 and, while it appears that it has been resolved there, it spread to Cape Town and KwaZulu-Natal on June 28.

To date, the burial of one Jewish teenager who died while the strike was on in Johannesburg, was affected, according to the Chevrah Kadisha (the Jewish burial society).

Forensic officers, who assist a trained, qualified pathologist with post mortems, went on strike over several issues. One of them related to organ dissections. The officers were also unhappy that they were being made to do work for which they were not adequately trained and claimed they were not being compensated for this.

The workers claimed they were made to do post mortem preparations which included the dissecting of bodies, removal of organs, stitching of bodies and the preparation of the organs for investigation.

In the Western Cape and KwaZulu-Natal, forensic officers in several mortuaries started with a “work-to-rule” strike, which means they will not conduct dissections, as this is not part of their contractual agreements.  

Tzivia Grauman, head of communications at the Chev, said: “The strike did cause some concern and anxiety for the Chevrah Kadisha, particularly since Jewish burials must be conducted at the earliest possible opportunity. Any delay is therefore troubling.

“Sadly, there was one family who was affected – the burial had to be postponed. Fortunately, we have a good working relationship with the Forensic Pathology Services and ongoing communication ensured that we were kept appraised of developments.”

Dr Candice Hansmeyer, a specialist forensic pathologist, told Jewish Report that the strike had officially ended, though one union was allegedly not in agreement and their grievances were being addressed.

In an interview, Hansmeyer laid to rest rumours about cleaners doing the post mortems, saying this was patently untrue. She said they are assisted by paramedics from the South African National Defence Force and it worked like “well-oiled machinery”.

She also said that during the strike, a number of “compassionate” post mortems had been done on people of the Jewish and Muslim faiths and she denied that there had been a backlog of any so-called “religious” cases, as was widely suggested.

“A compassionate autopsy,” she said, “is considered on religious and cultural grounds and the merit of each case is fully investigated. Things won’t be done as a priority. We do consider the needs of the family, but the law is paramount and we have to respect this.”