First batch of haj pilgrims leaves today
First batch of haj pilgrims leaves today
JAKARTA (JP): Flights taking the first of the 197,615
Indonesian haj pilgrims to Mecca are scheduled to leave this
morning from all six embarkation airports.
Last year Indonesia sent 194,000 pilgrims; thousands of others
had to wait until this year because demand exceeded the quota set
by the Saudi government.
If no quota had been set it is estimated more than 500,000
people would have applied to go this year.
More than 8,100 pilgrims are due to fly today. The haj is the
sixth tenet of Islam and is compulsory for all Moslems.
Minister of Religious Affairs Tarmizi Taher is scheduled to
bid farewell to the pilgrims aboard the first plane to take off
from Jakarta's Halim Perdanakusumah airport.
"There will be no ceremony at the embarkation ports, the
departures will just be marked by a joint prayer, attended by
government officials," a Ministry of Religious Affairs public
relations officer told The Jakarta Post yesterday.
Unlike last year, there will not be any televised speeches by
the minister because all the departures have been well prepared.
In 1996 thousands of pilgrims had to have their customary one-
day stay at the haj dormitories extended as they had not obtained
the necessary documents for their departure. The minister then
felt the need to deliver a speech to appease the pilgrims'
anxiety.
This year, the Saudi embassy here issued visas to all pilgrims
one month before their departure.
The Ministry of Religious Affairs said recently it had divided
the pilgrims into 474 batches.
The last flight is scheduled to leave Jakarta on April 10. The
haj season will climax on Idul Adha (Sacrifice Day) on April 18.
According to the schedule the pilgrims will start flying home
on April 22.
Seventeen thousand one hundred and fifty pilgrims will leave
Medan in 36 batches; 89,611 will leave Jakarta in 189 batches;
34,625 will depart from Surabaya, East Java, in 86 batches;
21,189 are due to leave from Ujung Pandang in 61 batches and
21,453 pilgrims will leave from the newly inaugurated embarkation
port of Surakarta (Solo), Central Java, in 63 batches.
Garuda Indonesia, the national flag-carrier which has been
appointed by the government to transport the pilgrims to the Holy
Land, has declared it is ready for the pilgrimage. It has
prepared 205,000 seats.
The Ministry of Religious Affairs held an orientation course
yesterday for journalists in an effort to improve their knowledge
about the management of haj pilgrims.
Sulastomo, the chairman of the Indonesian Haj Brotherhood
Association which groups Indonesians who have performed the haj
pilgrimage, suggested that Saudi Arabia should do away with haj
visas next year.
Expressing concern over the long visa application process,
Sulastomo said visas were not necessary because Indonesians
already use special haj passports.
Haj passports are only applicable for the pilgrimage and not
other journeys, such as the minor haj. "It is wasting time and
money to arrange something you're not going to need," Sulastomo
said.
It currently takes two to three months to obtain a visa.
He also suggested that in order to shorten the time needed for
visa arrangements, the Saudi government should open new
consulates at every embarkation port, thus helping reduce the
pilgrims' expenses. (12)