PAPHOS cemeteries have taken to digging graves in the pathways as there is no longer any burial space remaining.
The municipality has admitted that there has been a serious problem in the town’s two main cemeteries since 2001 and say they are looking for solutions, but no progress has been made so far.
A temporary solution was found in 2004 when two small plots of land in Exo Vrysi were turned into cemeteries, but space has now also run out there.
The town’s cemeteries are also said to be in an unkempt state and are not being properly cleaned or looked after.
According to local press reports, the relevant state services are not co-operating. Land in the Achelia area allegedly could have been allocated to Paphos, Yeroskipou and Achelia and Timi Municipalities but the Agriculture Ministry is said to be refusing to release the land.
Agriculture Minister Fotis Fotiou and Interior Minister Christos Patsalides, along with Paphos Mayor Savvas Vergas, will be meeting today to discuss the matter.
Vergas has said that the Municipality is ready to begin construction of a new cemetery as soon as permission is granted.
The problem of overcrowding in Cyprus cemeteries is not a new one. In early July a Nicosia priest had his duties transferred to the Central Prisons after he allegedly sold plots in the aisles of the Constantinou and Eleni cemetery to pay for his medical treatment.
The story came to light when relatives of those buried complained that they could not navigate the walkways to visit the graves of their loved ones.
A British businessman has been trying to open a crematorium in Paphos for some time but says he has run into a brick wall of bureaucracy.
Keith McCready said many locals had backed his plan, describing the government as “not being in touch with the people”.
He added that he knows of a Catholic cemetery in the town, “which is also nearing its capacity and is in dire need of renovation.
“The headstones and walls are crumbling and somebody really needs to do something about it.”
Currently, those wishing to be cremated must arrange for their bodies to be taken abroad at huge cost to relatives.
McCready said they were looking at land just outside Paphos, between the highway and the airport, where they would construct two buildings. One would house the crematorium and the other would be used to hold a service for the deceased.
At the end of May, the Interior Ministry confirmed that it has been studying the possibility of drafting new regulations that will allow cremation on the island.
