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“It is quite a different and sad Ramadan,” Shafwaan Laubscher said after the announcement that Bo-Kaap resident Mogamat Cassiem Harris had died after hiring Covid-19.
Harris, 51, was the sixth person in Cape Town’s historic suburb to contract the virus that has engulfed the country and parts of the world in a shutdown.
He was also the second in the close-knit community to die of the virus. In early April, Kulsum Cassiem contracted pneumonia, and also Covid-19, and died.
READ: 81-year-old Bo-Kaap woman dies of Covid-19
Usually at this time of year, the community is immersed in its routine of special Ramadan prayers as they fast between sunrise and sunset.
At night, they take food between themselves and the poor, and eat together in long places that can sometimes stretch an entire block.
It is a moment of solidarity often covered by the media, which was also in mourning on Wednesday. ENCA cameraman Lungile Tom died at age 45 on Wednesday, also after contracting the virus.
READ: Covid-19: eNCA mourns loss of cameraman Lungile Tom, 45
The time of the coronavirus has changed all the usual forms of Bo-Kaap.
Prayers are at home, or on video, instead of worshipers rushing from nearby offices and workplaces, climbing the hill to the old mosque to pray.
“This has touched us all,” Laubscher said sadly.
Laubscher is part of the Covid-19 Bo-Kaap community response team, which has formulated protocols to help keep the virus at bay and help affected families in some way.
Harris’s death notice encapsulated acceptance of his death, in line with the deep tenets of his faith.
“We are heartbroken at his sudden disappearance, but we are satisfied with the decree of the Almighty that it was time to return to Allah,” he said.
But it still hit hard at home.
Á family man with a soft voice
Harris’s brother-in-law, Anwaar Galwaan, spoke fondly of Harris.
“He was very smooth, even though he was big and bald. He was a family man,” he told News24.
He said Harris went through a lot of things due to kidney problems. He had undergone his usual kidney dialysis in hospital last Thursday.
Despite this, he did his best to support his two sons and one daughter, and his wife Ayesha. She had been working from home during the lockdown.
Harris was also very proud of his daughter, Nabila, who was once celebrated as the best math student in the Western Cape.
On Saturday, he felt unwell and his symptoms were in line with those known to be associated with Covid-19.
The community’s Covid-19 response team was immediately contacted, and has been trained in how to deal with suspected cases; was tested and isolation protocols were initiated.
The community had mobilized rapidly with regard to the virus and, as early as March, began its own blockade when the virus was still seen as something carried by tourists. Since then, it has been passed between people who have no history of traveling abroad or contact with someone who has traveled.
On Monday, Harris was rushed to the hospital and put on a respirator while his lungs ached, but the disease progressed rapidly.
He died on Tuesday.
Galwaan said the family was lucky not to have to wait too long for the release of her body for the funeral. In line with his faith, this is usually completed as quickly as possible after death.
He was buried Tuesday afternoon.
Galwaan said the funeral homes and people who prepared Morris’s body were obsessively meticulous about following the disinfection and hygiene protocols at all times, to the point of disinfecting the swords used to prepare his grave, but they were also extremely respectful while doing so. did.
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