Volunteer grave diggers

Some find comfort at the bottom of an empty grave

Hajji Salah, 56, and his team are ready to dig a tomb for anyone, Muslim or Christian, at anytime--and at no charge.

In Kurdish society, when someone dies and he is male, he is washed in a mosque. If the person is female, she is washed at home. Immediately after, a group of men rush to a cemetery to dig a grave for the dead person.

Hajji Salah, also known as Salaha Rash, and his team of five men have been digging graves for eight years; they have all the necessary equipment for digging graves such as shovels, drillers, a generator, a tent and other tools of the trade.

 "In Erbil city, we are well-known as tomb diggers--we are ready to dig graves for anyone, Muslim or Christian, at anytime and for free," said Hajji Salah while he was sitting behind a fire in his workplace. He is also a construction worker. "I want you to publish my phone number so that people can call me to dig a grave," said Salah.

He started this volunteer work eight years ago. He liked going to the cemetery whenever someone close to him died to help dig the grave. He likes the feeling inside the grave. "Inside the grave, while I am digging, I feel very comfortable and life becomes very simple in front of my eyes."

 Salah and his men can dig and prepare one grave in less than two hours; regularly, every week, they dig three graves. The height of the grave should be one meter and a half, and about two meters wide, but for children the grave is smaller.

There are other volunteer tomb-diggers in Erbil city who are well organized. Moreover, there are workers who dig graves for money. They charge US$200 to dig a grave during daylight, but if it is at night they charge more money. Salah said the workers who dig graves for money don't like the volunteer groups. "They think we are a threat to their business."

In Erbil city, there are no companies for such a business, but in Suleimaniya city there are.

Hajji Muhammad, Salah's friend, said when Salah went to Hajj in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, he helped a lot of people. "It was very crowded in Mecca; many old people died and collapsed; Salah carried a number of dead and sick Hajjis and put them into ambulances. I called his wife and I said even in Mecca he is helping people," said Muhammad.

Salah and his wife live alone together alone. His wife is OK with what he is doing, but she wants him to be at home at night--not digging graves.

By Qassim Khidhir