Download PDF“One of the most common ways in which migrants sometimes rely is on each other as they form communities in the countries that they settle, as compatriots.”
The community of Eastfield extension 23, Vosloorus, in the east of Johannesburg, woke to the shocking news of the passing of Ghanaian migrant, Doris Konadu*, who had been staying in Vosloorus for several years. The Ghanaian, a popular hairdresser in the area, passed away on Monday, 3 June 2024. The residents of Eastfield who knew her are calling for help on social media, to assist in repatriating the mortal remains of the Ghanaian.
The responses were not all great as some people expressed disbelief at the deceased’s lack of financial savings, something that’s very common for most working class people.
When a migrant passes on while abroad, many setbacks come into play, including documentation processes (related to death) that can be a nightmare, while costs related to the storage of the mortal remains of the deceased may be mounting.
When a migrant dies in South Africa, the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (Dirco) provides help with needs like a permit to send the body home, the total cost of transportation and establishing contact with undertakers in South Africa and the family of the deceased person. Dirco does not do this work alone, they work with diplomatic missions from the countries of the deceased. In the case of Konadu, the Ghana High Mission in South Africa, is the best outlet to seek help as it lists ‘Repatriation of Mortal Remains of Ghanaians to Ghana’ as one of its welfare functions.
Often, migrants have to put strategies into place to overcome problems associated with living and even dying abroad. The most direct strategy to ensure as little of a headache as possible if death happens is to pay for insurance, to help take the mortal remains back to the country of origin. This is very popular with the Zimbabwean diaspora, for example.
It is a serious question of life, Beacon Mbiba documented how Zimbabwean migrants deal with death outside Zimbabwe.
Funerary practices observed by working class migrants abroad have also been shaped by the economics of repatriation of mortal remains. For a lot of migrants, traveling home is very expensive and for others it is risky. The reasons for this are because many migrants are not working for big wages while others are undocumented and fear being deported should they leave the underground.
One of the most common ways in which migrants sometimes rely is on each other as they form communities in the countries that they settle, as compatriots. The importance of maintaining relationships for support has been highlighted very sharply by the passing of Konadu in Vosloorus where the only other Ghanaians are her family, with at least two adults and the children that survive her.
Although the community of Vosloorus ext. 23 has been called on to help with donations, the effort has not been as fruitful as had been first hoped for, in the period since the passing of the West African seamstress.
According to Kganyago (full name withheld) from Vosloorus, community members intended to bury the body of the Ghanian locally but when contacting her family who are in Ghana, for permission, Konadu’s mother strongly refused to have her daughter buried far away from home.
The refusal has left community members in Vosloorus scrambling for solutions. The Ekurhuleni south township is not a popular destination for Ghanaian migrants, although it hosts a healthy population of Zimbabwe, Mozambican and other migrants within the Southern African Development Community.
According to Kganyago Konadu leaves behind young children and an unemployed husband. Her mother back in Ghana seeks for her remains to be buried in her country of origin.
This article was submitted on 12 June 2024. You may republish this article, so long as you credit the authors and Karibu! Online (www.Karibu.org.za), and do not change the text. Please include a link back to the original article.
