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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Choa Chu Kang Cemetery
Cài Cù Gǎng Fén Chǎng (蔡厝港坟場)
Kawasan Perkuburan Choa Chu Kang (ڤرقبورن چوا چو كڠ)
Choa Chu Kang Cemetery is located in Singapore
Choa Chu Kang Cemetery
Location in Singapore
Religion
AffiliationSee below
Religious features
See Memorials and Amenities below
Location
LocationWest Region, Singapore
CountrySingapore
Coordinates1°22′42″N 103°41′35″E / 1.37820°N 103.69318°E / 1.37820; 103.69318
Architecture
TypeCemetery
FounderMunicipal Commission of Singapore
Established1947

The Choa Chu Kang Cemetery is the largest cemetery in Singapore. It is a multi-faith establishment, with burial grounds for different religions including Buddhism, Taoism, Christianity, Islam and Hinduism. Within the grounds of the cemetery are also different independent amenities such as a chapel, a mosque, columbariums, and funeral parlours.

History

[edit]

The Choa Chu Kang Cemetery was opened in 1947 by the Municipal Commission of Singapore.[1][2][3] It was not only designated as a multi-faith cemetery but also one which took the sects of religions into consideration.[4] Management of the cemetery was also taken up by the National Environment Agency (NEA), which provides guidelines on safety and conservation in the cemetery while also allowing burials to take place.[5][6] The first ever exhumation in the cemetery took place in 2004, with at least three thousand graves exhumed and reinterred elsewhere in a different portion of the cemetery.[7][8] Then in July 2017, the NEA announced that at least 45,500 Chinese graves and 35,000 Muslim graves would be exhumed in stages in order to make way for an expansion of the nearby Tengah Air Base.[9][10] By 2020, at least 64,440 unclaimed Chinese graves were reclaimed by next-of-kin of the deceased.[11]

Religions

[edit]

The main burial grounds in the cemetery are dedicated to the Chinese, Muslim, Christian, Hindu and Jewish communities.[4][5] There are two Muslim cemeteries in the area, namely the Pusara Aman and Pusara Abadi burial grounds. The Christian part of the cemetery has sections for Protestants and Roman Catholics, as well as Orthodox Christians.[4] Burial grounds also exist for religious minorities, such as the Parsi community and adherents to the Baháʼí Faith.[12][13] Although the Ahmadiyya Jama'at is commonly associated with Islam, their burial ground in the cemetery is segregated from the main Muslim burying ground and is not managed by the Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura due to theological differences between Ahmadi and mainstream Sunni Muslims.[14][15] There is also an unmarked and abandoned Muslim burial ground at the end of Old Choa Chu Kang Road, which predates the current NEA-approved Islamic burial grounds.[16]

Graves in the Choa Chu Kang Cemetery have a fifteen year lease period.[17][18] After the limit has been reached, the body will be exhumed and reinterred in another part of the cemetery or even cremated if given consent from the family of the deceased.[18]

Memorials

[edit]

WWII memorial

[edit]

A World War II memorial exists in the Chinese sector of the Choa Chu Kang Cemetery.[19] Underneath the memorial is a mass grave of two thousand Chinese civilians that were massacred by Japanese forces at Bamboo Lane, now part of present-day Rochor.[19]

SilkAir Flight MI185 Memorial

[edit]

This memorial was erected in 1998 to honour the passengers and crew of the SilkAir Flight 185, all of whom were killed in a crash on 19 December 1997.[20][21] Funded by SilkAir themselves, the memorial is made from polished black marble, with the names of the victims of the crash inscribed in gold.[20][21] It is one of two memorials relating to the incident, the other one located in Palembang.

Amenities

[edit]

Places of worship

[edit]

The Muslim portion of the cemetery is served by Masjid Pusara Aman, a congregational mosque at the entrance of the cemetery.[22] Built in 1972, the mosque holds both the five daily prayers and the Friday prayer while also having a second role as a funeral parlour where the deceased Muslim is washed and wrapped for burial.[22][23] A zinc-roofed shelter in the northwestern corner of the mosque was converted into a cafe in 2014.[24]

There is also a chapel at the entrance of the Christian portion of the cemetery.[25] It is regularly used for religious ceremonies and prayers.[26] The chapel is served by its own bus stop that is accessible from bus services 172 and 405.[27]

Columbaria

[edit]

The Choa Chu Kang Columbarium is the main columbaria of the cemetery. Described as "mansion-like," it has at least 300,000 niches and has a rectangular layout with rounded edges.[28] The columbarium is directly operated by the government, making it one of three columbaria with the same status.[29] It can be found at the end of the fourth path of the Chinese cemetery.[30]

Established in 1999, the Garden of Remembrance is a Christian columbarium, built in the style of modernist architecture with the general appearance of the building resembling two palms outstretched in prayer.[31][32] It was officially reopened on 29 September 2001 after a major reconstruction.[33]

The Nirvana Memorial Garden is a Buddhist columbarium, founded between in 1990 and reopened in 2009 by the Nirvana Foundation.[34][35] The interior of the columbarium resembles a hotel, with cushioned seats and common areas that feature crystal decorations.[36] It is adjacent to the Choa Chu Kang Crematorium, directly opposite the Ahmadiyya burial ground.[37]

Other colombaria in the site include the An-Le Memorial Hall, also known as Mount Prajna, which was opened in March 2005 by local company Intersanctuary.[38]

Cremation facilities

[edit]

There is only one crematorium in the cemetery, the Choa Chu Kang Crematorium, which is adjacent to the Nirvana Memorial Garden.[39] Like the main columbarium of the cemetery, the crematorium is fully managed by the government through the NEA.[40] It is one of two government-owned crematories in Singapore, the other being the Mandai Crematorium.[41][42]

The Garden of Peace is a miniature garden in the heart of the cemetery.[43] The purpose of the garden is for families to scatter the ashes of their deceased, with designated lanes for such procedures to be carried out that allows for the ashes to mix with the soil.[44][45] It is the first in-land ash-scattering garden in the country and was opened in 2021.[42][46]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ↑ "Many graves at Choa Chu Kang still unclaimed". The Straits Times. 23 August 2003. p. 2. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  2. ↑ "Where the dead go to rest". The Straits Times (2nd ed.). 15 October 2011. p. 9. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  3. ↑ "Notice: Singapore Municipality". The Straits Times. 5 May 1947. p. 2. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 Ng, Kelly (21 July 2017). "The guardians of Choa Chu Kang Cemetery". Channel News Asia. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  5. 1 2 Lee, C.J. (11 August 2024). "Choa Chu Kang Cemetery: Singapore's Last Open Burial Site & Largest Cemetery". The Smart Local. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  6. ↑ "Crypt Burial System". National Environment Agency. 31 May 2024. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  7. ↑ "More than 17,000 graves will be exhumed at Choa Chu Kang cemetery". Today Newspaper. 18 March 2005. p. 10. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  8. ↑ "Phase 2 of Exhumation". The Straits Times. 18 March 2005. p. 16. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  9. ↑ Ong, Tanya (20 July 2017). "Parts of S'pore's largest & only operating burial cemetery to give way to Tengah Air Base". Mothership. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  10. ↑ "Singapore's biggest and only active public cemetery will shrink by one-third to make way for Tengah Air Base expansion". The Straits Times. 18 July 2017. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  11. ↑ "Next-of-kin of 27,000 claimed graves at Choa Chu Kang Cemetery opt for private exhumation". The Straits Times. 10 July 2020. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  12. ↑ Foo, S.T. (20 May 2022). "Parsi Community". National Library Board. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  13. ↑ Woo, F.C.; Thomas, Lynette (2008). "Baháʼís in Singapore: Patterns of Conversion". Religious Diversity in Singapore: 187. ISBN 9789812307538 – via Cambridge Core.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: periodical has ISBN (link)
  14. ↑ Hussein, Zakir (29 July 2005). "Narrow escape in Jakarta for 14 Ahmadiyya members from S'pore". The Straits Times. p. 10. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  15. ↑ Yong, Nicholas (2 May 2017). "Behind the belief: The Ahmadis of Singapore". Yahoo! News. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  16. ↑ Teo, Eisen (2 November 2021). "Old Choa Chu Kang Road End Muslim Cemetery". History by Eisen. Retrieved 6 September 2006.
  17. ↑ "Singapore's First Inland Ash Scattering Garden". Singapore 101. 4 November 2022. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  18. 1 2 Koh, Jeremy (21 June 2016). "Choa Chu Kang cemetery to be redeveloped again". The Straits Times. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  19. 1 2 "The Forgotten WWII Tomb Memorial at Choa Chu Kang Cemetery". Remember Singapore. 23 June 2022. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  20. 1 2 Vasoo, Sharon (3 December 1998). "Memorial service for crash victims". The Straits Times. p. 2. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  21. 1 2 Lim, Jessie (18 December 2022). "SilkAir crash anniversary: Her parents were planning to spend Christmas in Singapore". The Straits Times. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  22. 1 2 Eunos, Nadzri (11 May 2007). "Sekilas Masjid Pusara Aman" [A glimpse at the Pusara Aman Mosque]. Berita Harian (in Malay). p. 10. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  23. ↑ Abdurrahim, Zhulkarnain (18 February 2025). "Status of land tenure for Masjid Al-Firdaus and Masjid Pusara Aman". Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  24. ↑ "Buka kafe dekat tanah perkuburan" [Open a cafe at the cemetery]. Berita Harian Online (in Malay). 10 May 2015. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  25. ↑ "Choa Chu Kang Cemetery Chapel (Church)". www.streetdirectory.com. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  26. ↑ Lai, Clara (29 October 2014). "Blessing of Choa Chu Kang Catholic Cemetery on All Souls' Day". Catholic News. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  27. ↑ "B/S 31059 - Aft Cemy Chapel (Jln Bahar) | Bus Stop Information | Bus Interchange". businterchange.net. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  28. ↑ Teo, Lairel; Hodson, James (21 December 2000). "300,000 more niches for ashes of the dead". The Straits Times. p. 7. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  29. ↑ "Ash management: Understanding columbarium niches in Singapore". Direct Funeral. 2 January 2024. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  30. ↑ "Choa Chu Kang - NEA (Columbarium) - 51 Chinese Cemetery Path 4 (S)698932". www.streetdirectory.com. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  31. ↑ Sim, Arthur (14 April 2001). "There is life after death". The Straits Times. p. 11. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  32. ↑ "A serene space to remember our beloved". Methodist Message. 30 September 2016. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  33. ↑ "The Garden of Remembrance: A Christian Columbarium". The Straits Times. 29 September 2001. p. 5. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  34. ↑ Lim, Jack (1 November 2021). "Nirvana Memorial Garden". Atlas Obscura. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  35. ↑ "The History And Philosophy Of Nirvana Memorial Garden". Nirvana Memorial Singapore. 28 April 2023. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  36. ↑ Zaccheus, Melody (26 January 2015). "Carving a niche in after-death services". The Straits Times. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  37. ↑ "Nirvana Memorial Garden (Columbarium) - 950 Old Choa Chu Kang Road (S)699816". www.streetdirectory.com. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  38. ↑ "Rest in peace". The Straits Times. 24 April 2005. p. 7. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  39. ↑ "Choa Chu Kang Crematorium - NEA (Crematory) - 960 Old Choa Chu Kang Road (S)699818". www.streetdirectory.com. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  40. ↑ "Advisory On Visiting Government-Managed Cemetery, Columbaria And Inland Ash Scattering Gardens During Peak Days From 21 March To 19 April 2026". National Environment Agency. 25 February 2026. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  41. ↑ "Burial, Cremation and Ash Management". National Environment Agency. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  42. 1 2 Ng, Abigail (28 July 2025). "New Mandai crematorium and ash-scattering garden to open on Aug 15". Channel News Asia. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  43. ↑ "Ash-scattering garden set to open in Choa Chu Kang". The Straits Times. 12 May 2021. p. 1. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  44. ↑ "First inland ash-scattering garden to open here on Monday". The Straits Times. 12 May 2021. p. 1. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  45. ↑ Chan, Gabrielle (1 July 2023). "Scattering of ashes on land gaining popularity, but most still prefer niches". The Straits Times. p. 4. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
  46. ↑ Shafeeq, Syarafana (14 June 2025). "More in S'pore opt for ash-scattering garden as final resting place for loved ones". The Straits Times. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 6 September 2026.
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