First group of haj pilgrims leave for Saudi Arabia

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A group of 445 haj pilgrims left the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport here for Saudi Arabia, at 8 a.m. on Sunday, marking the start of a month-long dispatch of nearly 200,000 Indonesians who will perform the annual pilgrimage.

Transportation minister Agum Gumelar and health minister Achmad Sujudi saw off the Muslim pilgrims, all from Bandung regency in West Java.

Flying with Saudi Arabian Airlines, they were expected to arrive in Medina at 1:30 p.m. local time (6:30 p.m. Jakarta time) on Sunday, before continuing their journey to Mecca.

Religious minister Said Agiel Munawar and Director General for the Guidance of the Islamic Community and Haj Affairs Taufik Kamil were scheduled to welcome them upon arrival in Medina.

Speaking to the press after witnessing the takeoff, Agum gave his assurance that the aircraft which carry the country's haj pilgrims were fit to fly.

The second group of 445 pilgrims from Tasikmalaya, West Java, departed at 10 a.m. Two more groups took off from Juanda Airport in Surabaya.

In this year's haj season Indonesia will transport about 199,500 pilgrims to Saudi Arabia, some 15,000 of them having opted to take a special package and 3,200 being official guides.

They will depart for Saudi Arabia in 467 flight groups from eight points in Jakarta, Surabaya, Medan in North Sumatra, Batam in Riau, Banda Aceh in Aceh, Makassar in South Sulawesi, Balikpapan in East Kalimantan, and Surakarta in Central Java.

The national flag carrier Garuda and the its Saudi Arabian counterpart have been chartered to fly the pilgrims, with the former carrying 302 batches.

"We will serve the pilgrims better than last year," Agum said.

Meanwhile, director for haj services Nurdin Nasution confirmed that security measures had been stepped up in all haj dormitories across the country.

Nurdin said that apart from the security check imposed on people visiting the pilgrims, bomb squads had also been deployed at the dormitories.

"God willing, the haj pilgrims won't be disturbed," Nurdin said.

He recalled a recent explosion in a dormitory in North Sumatra, which broke a dormitory window and damaged the floor.

"Thank God it happened outside the haj season. It was not a bomb, but a firecracker," Nurdin said.

Meanwhile, health minister Achmad Sujudi said medical staff would keep an eye on the pilgrims' health until they arrived home.

"We suggest all haj pilgrims prepare themselves and bring their personal medicines and belongings with them," he said.

Haj pilgrims are reminded to maintain their physical fitness now that Saudi Arabia is entering the winter season, when temperatures range between 5 degrees and 24 degrees Celsius.