Traditional leaders reject Unam body donation call as taboo

Traditional and religious leaders say they do not support the call by the University of Namibia (Unam) for Namibians to donate their bodies for medical research.

It is a taboo, they say.

Both traditional leaders and clerics say donating bodies contradicts deeply rooted cultural beliefs about death, burial and the afterlife.

Unam says 11 individuals have pledged to donate their bodies for medical research and teaching purposes.

Ovaherero traditional official Tjizapouzeu Uahupirapi says body donations could interfere with a deceased person’s transition to becoming an ancestor.

“When people die, they become ancestors. Not burying them and donating them to the Unam School of Medicine would, I guess, stop them from becoming ancestors or from fulfilling their duties after death,” he says.

He was speaking to The Namibian in an interview on Tuesday afternoon.

Uahupirapi also questioned why modern alternatives are not being considered for training medical students.

“The world has moved on technologically. Why don’t they get those modified dolls that students can cut open and perform their operations on?” he asked.

Oukwanyama Traditional Authority chairperson Andrew Naikaku shares similar concerns.

“A dead person is a dead person, and you are to do away with that person respectfully. We don’t have anything like that in our tradition. That’s why we don’t support something like that,” Naikaku says.

According to Mbunza Traditional Authority leader Hompa Kaundu, the body donations contradict traditional norms and beliefs.
“It is very difficult in our traditional norms to accept that, it is taboo,” Kaundu says.

He adds that family members who agree to donate a corpse will be called to the traditional court, because that is equivalent to murder.
“It is a sin in traditional norms. It will impact the traditional custom negatively,” says Kaundu.

He says children and people will not fear death nor respect the traditional beliefs and practices surrounding death.

RELIGIOUS PERSPECTIVE

Speaking to The Namibian, Alliance of Christian Churches in Namibia executive chairperson Dolly Nengushe says the church acknowledges the sacredness of the human body but also supports the spirit of compassion behind body donations.

“From a biblical standpoint, the human body is indeed sacred, as it is described in 1 Corinthians 6:19 as the ‘temple of the Holy Spirit’. However, scripture also teaches that our eternal destiny is not determined by what happens to our physical body after death,” she says.

Nengushe says donating one’s body to medical science can be seen as an act of service aligned with biblical teachings about loving one’s neighbour and helping others.

“To families and individuals considering body donation, I would advise careful reflection, prayer and open discussions within their families and church communities. It is not inherently sinful to donate one’s body for medical purposes, provided it is done with dignity, respect and in accordance with both family and legal consent,” she says.

However, spokesperson for the Islamic Centre in Windhoek, Imaam Abdulbah Haroon, told The Namibian that body donation is not permissible in Islam due to the sacred status of the human body after death.

“It’s not permissible for a Muslim to donate his or her body for medical purposes after death because medical research often involves cutting and examining the body.

“In Islam, once a person dies, the body is protected under Islamic law. It is not permissible to transgress against it in any way whether by wounding, dissection or otherwise unless there is a legitimate reason under Shariah law.

“If a woman dies while pregnant and the fetus is still alive, then it becomes mandatory for doctors to try to save the life of the unborn child. This is permissible because the intention is to preserve life. If we are sure that the fetus is already dead, then such a procedure is not allowed,” Haroon says.