The bodies of three men who remained unclaimed were laid to rest today in a sombre ceremony which started at the mortuary at Mater Dei Hospital and continued at the Addolorata Cemetery.
The funeral, which is also known as a pauper’s burial, was organised by the Health Ministry after a notice in the Government Gazette announced that the bodies had remained unclaimed.
Alongside Father Leonard Falzon who led the ceremony was Health Minister Chris Fearne, representing the government, which takes over responsibility once the bodies remained unclaimed by relatives or friends.
The funeral mass which took place in the Mater Dei mortuary offered respect and dignity to the three men who were abandoned in their death – Nazzareno Bartolo, Peter Charles Cotton and Peter Cilia.
The passing away of loved ones is normally followed by newspaper announcements, but this was not the case for these men, a clear case that in a world which boasts of bringing people together sometimes leaves others behind.
In the past two years, over 40 persons were given a pauper’s burial after no relatives or friends came forward to claim the body.
Photos Alenka Falzon
