Reference :
V-F-CR-F-02516-N
Date :
01/04/2019
Title :
Mozambique : après le cyclone Idai, enterrer dignement les victimes aide les familles à faire leur deuil = Mozambique : after cyclone Idai, dignified burials help grieving families find closure = Mozambique : después del ciclón Idai, las sepulturas dignas ayudan a los familiares a hacer su duelo
Duration :
00:03:09
Editor :
unknown
Confidentiality level :
public
Publication restrictions :
publication without restrictions
Production company :
ICRC
ICRC producer :
NXEDLANA, Khatija Nomathamsanqa Ntabeleng
Description :
In Mozambique, the flood waters caused by Cyclone Idai in mid-March 2019 are, gradually, receding. But as the water level drops, new devastation is revealed.
Hundreds of thousands of people have lost their homes, but many, like 28 year old Joao Filipe Mawane, have also lost family members. Joao’s mother died in the flooding. Now, he just wants to be able to visit her grave, but he cannot. Water is still a barrier, and Joao is not even sure exactly where his mother is buried.
“There is no way to cross to where my mother is buried,” he says. “Up until now, I don’t know exactly where the grave of my mother is, whether it’s here or there.”
Communities in Mozambique have been working hard to bury their dead with dignity and respect. But the destruction of the cyclone uprooted many families. Some may not yet know a family member has actually died. Others do not know how to find the grave site to pay his respects.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is supporting flood affected communities to recover bodies, identify them, and bury them in clearly marked graves.
“We’ve had the full range of activities that pertain to management of the dead,” explains ICRC forensic expert Stephen Fonseca. “We’ve had the opportunity to find human remains and recover them, with the authorities and community.”
“And then we’ve also visited graves, just to get a sense of how the graves are essentially dug, and will those graves be recognisable in a number of years. And so we can offer some technical guidance, we provide equipment, and basic things like spades and hoes, just even {help to} dig a hole. Because it is so difficult out here and many of the communities have lost everything."
It is a difficult task for all concerned. But it is the only way to bring closure to families searching for missing loved ones. Unfortunately, it may be hard to find everyone who has been lost. “Sadly not all of those cases can be recovered,” explains Stephen Fonseca. “So you know we’ve had a number of different challenges and we’re not successful in every case but we certainly can make an effort to ensure that there is a dignified management of the dead so that families and communities can indeed bury their loved ones.”
No one knows how many people lost their lives in Cyclone Idai. It is possible an exact figure will never be known. But the work now, as well as supporting communities to rebuild, must be to ensure that as many of the dead are found, identified, and their families informed, so that young men like Joao can mourn, and remember, in the way he needs to. “My mother died right there, and I didn’t even see where my mother was buried,” he says. “There is no way to get to where they buried my mother. I don’t have anything more. I don’t have a plan. Is there a company that has a boat to come to here? It’s the second time that I have come to Madala.”
French title :
Mozambique : après le cyclone Idai, enterrer dignement les victimes aide les familles à faire leur deuil
English title :
Mozambique : after cyclone Idai, dignified burials help grieving families find closure
Spanish title :
Mozambique : después del ciclón Idai, las sepulturas dignas ayudan a los familiares a hacer su dueloo
Title in other language :
Mozambique : depois do ciclone Idai, enterros dignos ajudam as familias a dar um desfecho ao luto
Colour/B&W :
colour
SD/HD :
HD
Resolution :
1920 x 1080
Aspect ratio :
16/9
Original material/format :
H264
Best material/format available :
ProRes 422
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