A recent picture of the Bor cemetery showing graves by the road | Credit | Courtesy

Residents of Bor town are forced to bury dead bodies on top of existing graves due to a lack of space at the cemetery in Jonglei State capital, according to a civil society activist.

David Garang says the graveyard located at Block 9 is full.

The 500m by 500m piece of land was allocated by the state ministry of physical infrastructure in 2006.

Garang, who is the chairperson of the Civil Society Network in Jonglei, visited the graveyard on Sunday.

“It’s full to the extent that the dead bodies are buried on the road, which is very unfortunate,” he said.

Residents of Bor town have been using the limited space to lay to rest their loved ones for the last 15 years.

Garang says the area has also been affected by floods.

He stated that residents have reported dead bodies being ‘exhumed’ by running water.

Garang added that this has a serious health effect on residents of the town.

“The residents who are around there are complaining that the water that comes out from the taps are oily and it seems to be contaminated. So it’s not good for the people,” he added.