Funeral services that have been largely free in Cuba since the triumph of the 1959 Revolution are beginning to be charged, and others that were already charged will rise in price.
In Sancti Spíritus, according to a note published this Tuesday in Escambray, “the structure of Communals” is reorganized, the instance dedicated until now to these tasks, and a unit of obituary services has been created to “improve funeral homes and chapels in the province.”
The provincial newspaper offers an interview with the new director of that unit, Yoel Aquiles Martínez, who with the usual official jargon explains that “the monetary reimbursement for the payment of certain activities associated with deaths has already begun” due to “the need to free the State from some expenses and increase the efficiency of certain services”.
Until now, the note continues, charges have been made for the cremation of corpses and the transfer of the deceased to other provinces, but from now on the transfer of the deceased from one municipality to another within the same province will also be charged, as well as the “watch at home”.
In this case, the text says, “the funeral home provides the services related to the wake and the family would pay based on the approved price list.” It is a variant, remember Escambray, that “it is already applied in the capital of the country” but that in Sancti Spíritus “it is in the process of approval.”
It follows that the State will offer citizens who can afford them a kind of “extra” services, such as amphoras for ashes, “other types of coffins, of a better design” or “fine flowers”.
The delivery of a coffin, the transfer from the house or hospital to the funeral home or chapel with the disposal of the hearse, the fuel for that activity and the arrangement of the corpse, and within these benefits, those that are They are related to the wake in the premises authorized as such,” the newspaper clarifies, “but if the family member wants another type of service, such as carrying out the burial in another place, outside the municipality or province, then they would be charged for that.”
From the interview of Escambray it follows that the State will offer citizens who can afford them a kind of “extra” services, such as amphoras for ashes, “other types of coffins, of a better design” or “fine flowers.”
“Our goal is that little by little the obituary services become self-financing and with that income we can improve those that remain free of charge, which also includes constructive improvements to funeral homes and chapels, as well as the technical state of the cars, something in which they have been working, but, due to the degree of deterioration they presented and the time of exploitation, it has been impossible to carry out this activity efficiently”, acknowledges the official.
Yoel Aquiles Martínez also says that they have just received two hearses “of Chinese origin”, valued at 1,800,000 pesos each, “and another delivery of this type of means to the province is expected.”
When asked, which reflects the discomfort of the population due to the frequent delay of the hearses, the manager excuses himself by saying that they have “up to two hours to carry out the transfers, only that the car does not appear in the places until it is completed the legal documentation process”.
“This is a province with a high degree of population aging and the number of deaths has increased, to the point that, in recent times, an average of 200 and more deaths within a month”
And he develops: “This is a province with a high degree of population aging and the number of deaths has increased, to the point that, in recent times, of an average of 200 and more deaths within a month, today we are at above 400 and generally 50 percent of these happen between Friday and Sunday, which makes the obituary activity in the territory more complex”.
The announcement comes at a time when funeral services have hit rock bottom. The premises of the funeral homes have been deteriorating and lack sufficient staff for cleaning. Many times they have only one crystal to use during the wake to see the face of the deceased in the coffin, so families must wait for other mourners to finish using it to obtain one.
The traditional cup of coffee, inherent to Cuban wakes, has also disappeared due to the lack of the product in state funeral homes. The flower crowns sold to relatives have more tree leaves than flowers and have been shrinking in size and increasing in price each year. The amphoras for ashes are rough and fragile.
However, the worst criticism falls on the coffins or boxes of the dead, as they are popularly called. Made of flimsy wood, these coffins lost their metal edging years ago and the slats have been replaced by clapboards and cardboard. As a result, it is common to hear that the body of the deceased is dropped in the middle of the funeral or during the transfer to the cemetery.
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