Wednesday June 12, 2024
Residents gather at the School Policia cemetery (Buluusiya) in Mogadishu to search for the graves of their relatives following a government directive to clear the site for a new Somali Navy base. The order has sparked widespread protest and concern among the community, who are also facing additional fees to exhume the bodies
Mogadishu (HOL) — A large crowd gathered today outside the School Policia cemetery (Buluusiya) in Mogadishu as residents from various districts in the Banadir region searched for the graves of relatives buried years ago. The gathering followed the Federal Government's announcement yesterday that it needed the cemetery land and ordered the removal of all bodies within ten days.
The government's directive has caused widespread shock and dismay, with many describing it as inconsiderate and distressing. Several individuals reported an additional obstacle: a $20 fee to obtain a permit from the regional administration to exhume the bodies.
"We arrived this morning and were told to get a letter from the Banadir Region. While we cannot ignore the government's order, we are pleading for this fee to be waived," said one individual with relatives buried in the cemetery. "We cannot afford this fee. The sorrow of exhuming our loved ones after so many years is already too much. We ask the government to let us proceed without this financial burden."
Others echoed this sentiment, requesting the government to rescind its order due to the difficulty of locating the exact graves. "I don't know where my mother is buried. I am asking the government to allow us to keep visiting the cemetery for the sake of God," said a woman whose mother was interred there.
The Federal Government's directive has sparked widespread conversation and concern among the Somali people. The decision is part of a larger plan to repurpose the land for a Somali Navy command center. Minister of Defense Abdulkadir Mohamed Noor emphasized that the federal government owned the land before it became a cemetery and now intends to use it for public interest. "The government needs this land, which stretches from the entrance of Marino Gate airport to the Yerdemeli hospital. The land has always been of public interest and owned by the government. Now, the government has pressing needs, and the navy will be established here," Noor said during a press conference on Monday.
The cemetery has already seen the exhumation of notable figures, including the body of well-known comedian Abdi Muriidi Dheere (Ajakis), who passed away in September 2021. His family relocated his remains to a more secure location to prevent future disturbances.
Residents had previously exhumed bodies from the cemetery in response to an unexplained government directive issued in May 2024. The site, which includes the graves of several notable figures, such as former Mogadishu mayor Abdirahman Omar Yarisow, who was killed in a 2019 Al-Shabaab attack, has long been a significant location for the community.