The "Funeral Management Regulations" plan to stipulate that the state establishes a basic public service system for funerals

China News Agency, Beijing, September 7 (Reporter Wang Zumin) On the 7th, the Ministry of Civil Affairs of China publicly solicited opinions on the "Funeral Management Regulations (Draft for Comments)" (hereinafter referred to as the revised draft). The revised draft intends to stipulate that the state establish a basic public service system for funerals, start China's funeral services more humanely, and further promote the reform of China's funerals.

Data map: Villagers in Poyang County, Jiangxi Province voluntarily handed in nearly 500 coffins and sent them to the local biomass-fired power plant for incineration and power generation. Photo by Zhuo Zhongwei
The relevant person in charge of the Ministry of Civil Affairs of China answered reporters' questions on the revision of the "Funeral Management Regulations" on the 7th.
The person in charge introduced that the "Funeral Management Regulations" (hereinafter referred to as the "Regulations") promulgated by the State Council in 1997 played an important role in strengthening funeral management in accordance with the law, promoting funeral reform, and promoting the development of the funeral industry. However, with the rapid development and changes of the economy, society and funeral industry, it is urgent to revise the "Regulations" to improve the funeral service system, so as to provide legal protection for solving hot and difficult problems of social concern, further regulating funeral behavior, and strengthening funeral management. In 2004, the Ministry of Civil Affairs started the revision of the "Regulations", but it was stagnant due to the immature timing of the introduction. Since April 2018, the Ministry of Civil Affairs has once again started the revision of the Regulations, and in the first half of August, the revised draft for public comments was formed.
The person in charge said that the revised draft will be expanded from 6 chapters and 24 articles of the original "Regulations" to 8 chapters and 57 articles, and will regulate from five aspects:
The first is to continue to promote the funeral reform with the core of "implementing cremation and reforming burial". Expand the reform content from the implementation of cremation of remains to ecological burial and civilized low-carbon sacrificial sweeping, so as to promote harmonious coexistence between man and nature.
The second is to improve the basic public service system for funerals, focusing on clarifying government responsibilities, improving basic public services for funerals, and strengthening public welfare orientation. It is stipulated that the state establishes a basic public service system for funerals, covering five basic service items such as body collection and transportation, temporary storage, cremation, ashes storage, and ecological burial, and implements government pricing management in terms of prices, and provides free to extremely poor supporters and minimum living guarantees Objects and other urban and rural poor people, to meet the basic funeral needs of the public.
The third is to strengthen the management standards of cemeteries and columbariums. To highlight the public welfare attributes of cemeteries, it is forbidden to change public cemeteries (columbarium) to commercial public welfare (columbarium), and prohibit the use of financial funds or the use of rent instead of land to build commercial cemeteries (columbarium). Strictly control the price of commercial cemeteries, strictly limit the area of the cemetery, the height of the tombstone and the service life.
Fourth, establish funeral service rules and standardize the funeral service market. Implement fee announcements and clearly marked prices, open to the market services for direct contact with the remains, such as transportation, storage, embalming, and cosmetic surgery, and establish an access system to strengthen management.
Fifth, improve the working mechanism and strengthen supervision. In the part of legal responsibility, for illegal activities such as building funeral facilities without authorization, building graves in violation of regulations, and carrying out funeral services without authorization, clarify the subject of law enforcement and punishment measures, strengthen supervision during and after the event, and maintain the order of funeral management. (Finish)

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