Grief in Morogoro as scrap metal thieves target crosses

A grave after a grave after a grave in this cemetery in the eastern city of Morjuro, was vandalized.

In some, there is a gap where the metal steel was once stood up, in other cases, the religious symbol is determined like thieves, who were hoping to sell it to merchants, they tried and failed to remove it.

More than 250 was targeted in one small section of the Cola Municipal Cemetery alone.

Crime occurs mostly at night when there is no security no cemetery workers.

They left destroyed families and the sites, which sparked anger.

For more than two decades, Bodensa Chosby has been going to the cemetery once a month to visit her daughter’s graves and her mother – both of whom were desecrated over the past few years, several times.

The first to be targeted was the grave of her mother, who died in 2000.

A few months later that the family managed to save to replace the stolen cross in late 2021, her daughter’s grave was damaged. She was near and the elderly – her daughter died in 1997 at the age of 157.

Before Mrs. Chombi was able to make a decision on repairing her daughter’s cross, her new cross was passed on to her mother’s grave.

In a dilemma about what to do after that, I felt that the minerals were not an option when it was about to replace her daughter’s cross.

“This is the grave of my child – my fourth child,” she said indicates the concrete cross.

The stealing of crosses and signs of graves has become a disturbing direction in this part of Tanzania driven by the increasing demand for scrap metal.

“People who do this, are cursed because everyone is sad for what is going on,” says Ms. Chosby to the BBC.

“There are some young people who are now demanding to push the graves to be guarded overnight, especially those who suffer from tiles.”

Tiles can also be sold to people for use as decorations in their home.

Augustine Remy, brother of Mrs. Shumbi, says it is annoying to the entire society.

“This is very bad … When these areas that deserve respect are subject to such bad acts, they hurt me a lot,” he says to BBC.

The thirst of theft reflects despair among some to earn some money that goes beyond moral concerns about destroying sacred sites.

Criminals can earn between 700 and 870 Tanzanian shillings ($ 0.27-0.34 dollars; 0.22 pounds-£ 2.28) per kilogram.

It is not a large amount of money, but it may be sufficient to pay the price of a dish from the seller or some local alcohol.

“He often buys metal traders without asking questions,” says one of the men who confessed to the BBC.

By agreeing to speak, provided that his identity is not disclosed, he describes how thieves will go to welding first who cut the crosses into pieces before being transferred to scrap dealers.

Merchants themselves are facing the choice of buying cheaper commodities or following the law.

Izire Ramadhani, a merchant at the Morogoro City Center, remembers how in 2023, along with some other scrap dealers, remembers a person trying to sell a stolen cross and informed him to the authorities.

“In the past, they used to bring us on the crosses. But then we took one of them to the police, and after that he was sentenced to three and a half years after that, the theft decreased, but now Mr. Ramdani has returned,” Mr. Ramadan says to the British Broadcasting Authority.

He insists that he does not buy stolen goods.

“If the cross is brought here, the person coming for sale will be in trouble because we will take it to the police.”

Thieves also began targeting other graves like tiles and marble decorations, which can be easily sold to other buyers.

Dr. Nadimel Kilato, the health official of Morjuro, said that the city authorities are planning to improve the security of the cemetery by introducing fences and guards, but warned that “this requires resources and time.

“It is not something we can do today or tomorrow.”

He also mentioned initiatives to educate metal scrap dealers about materials that should not be purchased, such as the grave signs and railways.

In response to the crimes, the Tanzania government also pledged to organize scrap mineral industry.

Deputy Prime Minister Dotto Biteko stressed the need for companies licensed to adhere to laws and regulations.

“What is required is just applying this and keeping the residents to teach them on the same topic. We will continue to educate our people until we put our infrastructure safe.”

Religious leaders also appeal to their societies to do more to prevent participants in these crimes from implementing them.

Reverend Stephen Megara from Jesus’ gatherings from God in Morjuro called for a unified effort to educate young people about the need to respect the holy places.

He says: “Together, we must restore their dignity, we know that some young people are subject to bad work, but we can return them to the right track,” he says.

For relatives of those whose graves have been desecrated, there is a sense of frustration.

Mrs. Chosby wants to spend more money on security in the graves in addition to commitment to carefully sponsoring sites befitting a place where loved ones are placed for comfort.

She is in the process of replacing her mother’s cross for the second time – and as in the case of her daughter – she chooses concrete.