Mombasa court allows woman to bury kin Islamic way

A Mombasa court in June settled a religious clash with a ruling that a woman be buried according to Islamic rites.

Mombasa Principal Magistrate Henry Nyakweba on June 29 granted a Muslim woman, Zainab Isaac Njuguna, the right to bury her adopted daughter, Yasmin Isaac.

Her estranged husband, Isaac Njuguna Njoroge, had wanted Ms Yasmin, buried in central Kenya in a Christian ceremony.

The couple who married in 1995 adopted Yasmin following the death of her mother Fatuma Noor, Ms Zainab's sister.

Mr Njuguna retained his Christian faith as Zainab practiced Islam. Isaac claimed he married Zainab in accordance with Gikuyu customary law and together they bore three children.

When the couple split in January 2012, Yasmin remained with Njuguna in Mtwapa. Zainab moved to Kisimani in Bamburi while Njuguna remained in Mtwapa. Yasmin married but returned to Njuguna's home when the marriage failed where she fell ill and died.

No sooner had Yasmin died than Zainab rushed to court for burial orders after learning that Njuguna was preparing to bury the body in central Kenya in a Christian ceremony.

Zainab submitted that Yasmin had died a Muslim and deserved an Islamic, burial but Njuguna fought back claiming the deceased expressed a wish to be buried as a Christian.

He told the court that it would be painful for him if his adopted daughter was buried in accordance with Islamic religion rituals.

But Zainab said Njuguna was no longer her husband and insisted that Yasmin died a Muslim. "I lived with Yasmin in the same house and did not know of any difference between her religious beliefs and mine," said Zainab.

The court ruled that although it was not clear what faith Yasmin professed when she died, it was undisputed that she was of Muslim heritage.