7th June 2007, 11:50 AM
common law offence of offering indignities to human remains
Who decides what is an 'indignity'. I woulod have no problems with future generations rummaging around in my mortal remains but I can see cases where individuals or 'pressure groups' could object to any study being done - its an element that has been taken into account when dealing with specimens taken from foreign indiginous peoples by eplorers and antiquarians. If it is applied widely in this country that taking remains and studying them counts as an 'indignity' then it could stymie a lot of valuable research in future.
Who decides what is an 'indignity'. I woulod have no problems with future generations rummaging around in my mortal remains but I can see cases where individuals or 'pressure groups' could object to any study being done - its an element that has been taken into account when dealing with specimens taken from foreign indiginous peoples by eplorers and antiquarians. If it is applied widely in this country that taking remains and studying them counts as an 'indignity' then it could stymie a lot of valuable research in future.