Voodoo Priests Object to Mass Burials

Haiti's voodoo priests are objecting to anonymous mass burials of earthquake victims, raising fears that such desecration could result in restless souls of the dead returning as zombies. "It it not in our culture to bury people in such a fashion," Haiti's main voodoo leader, Max Beauvoir, told Haiti President Rene Preval in a meeting. "The conditions in which bodies are being buried is not respecting the dignity of these people."

Tens of thousands of bodies have been dumped in mass graves outside Port-au-Prince to protect public health. Haitians are being told to place bodies on the street for collection by garbage and other trucks. More than half of Haiti's 9 million people practice voodoo, reports Reuters. Followers believe dead bodies can be brought back to life by supernatural forces to persecute the living. (More Haiti stories.)