Many Hong Kong funeral parlours are refusing to provide services for Aids victims and their families, prompting concerns of discriminatory practices under the Disability Discrimination Ordinance.
A South China Morning Post expose revealed a majority of undertakers cited fears of infection as the main reason for refusing to handle the bodies of Aids victims.
As part of its investigation, an SCMP reporter posed as a customer and called six funeral homes, requesting services 'for a friend who died of an infectious disease'. All six refused to handle the case.
'Do you mean Aids? No, we don't take such jobs,' said a woman at Hong Kong Funeral Home in North Point.
Another funeral home, International Funeral Parlour, said it would transfer the corpse from the hospital to the crematorium for an additional $1,000, on top of the usual $8,000 charge. But it would not provide a complete funeral - make-up, mourning rituals and public viewing.
Social workers and medical staff say refusing to provide funeral services for Aids victims compounds the grief of their family and friends.
Rita Chung Wau-yee, a nursing specialist at Queen Elizabeth Hospital's Aids Unit, said funeral rites were important as they gave family members an emotional outlet and a chance to say goodbye. She said the absence of a funeral would lead to 'unresolved grief'.
