Undas

Cemeteries in Metro Manila closed during Undas week

Dwight de Leon

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Cemeteries in Metro Manila closed during Undas week

UNDAS. Individuals start visiting their departed love ones to offer flowers, light candles and prayers on Sunday, Oct 25, 2020, at Bagbag public cemetery in Quezon City, a week before All Saints and All Souls Day.

Darren Langit/Rappler

(1st UPDATE) The move is a bid to prevent mass gatherings that could trigger COVID-19 spread

Twenty-nine public cemeteries in the National Capital Region (NCR) will not accept visitors from October 29 to November 2, a time when Filipinos observe Undas or All Saints’ Day.

The Metro Manila Council passed a resolution urging local governments in the metropolis to restrict access to public and private cemeteries, memorial parks, and columbaria during the said period, in a bid to prevent mass gatherings that could trigger COVID-19 spread.

“Filipinos can still physically visit the graves of their departed loved ones earlier than October 29 or later than November 2, subject to the prescribed 30% venue capacity,” said Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Chairman Benhur Abalos, coordinator of the 17 NCR mayors, on Tuesday, October 12.

At a “Laging Handa” briefing on Saturday, Abalos reiterated that the public cemeteries will be closed for the specified five days, even though NCR will be under Alert Level 3 from October 16 to 31. Under this alert level, vaccinated individuals can gather at 30% venue capacity for indoor activities and 50% for outdoor activities. 

Mayors in the region implemented the same measure in 2020, when the Philippines was seven months into the COVID-19 pandemic.

Metro Manila was grappling with over 16,000 active COVID-19 cases as of October 12. – Rappler.com

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Dwight de Leon

Dwight de Leon is a multimedia reporter who covers President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., the Malacañang, and the Commission on Elections for Rappler.