Govt open to suggestions on haj operation
Govt open to suggestions on haj operation
JAKARTA (JP): The Ministry of Religious Affairs, facing strong
criticism over the chaos marring this year's haj pilgrimage, says
it is open to suggestions on how the operation might be improved.
Amidhan, the ministry's Director General for Islamic and Haj
Affairs, has invited the Indonesian Consumers Organization (YLKI)
to engage in "constructive talks".
"The government is ready to hold constructive discussions with
the YLKI," Amidhan was quoted by the Antara news agency as
saying.
Zoemrotin K.S., chairman of the YLKI, lashed out at the
government last week for glitches in the ongoing haj operation,
including the chaotic processing of travel documents which has
caused some 2,000 prospective pilgrims to have their departure
postponed.
Zoemrotin called this year's operation "the worst", citing
various problems which showed, he said, the "ineffectiveness of
the haj operation, which also causes the haj fees to be very
expensive".
This year's haj fee is about Rp 7 million (approximately
US$3,100).
Amidhan acknowledged the organization's concern for the
protection of Moslems as consumers, but reproached it for making
arbitrary comparisons. "If this year's operation is the worst,
what's the comparison?" he asked.
Another criticism came on Saturday from the Muhammadiyah
Moslem organization. Chairman Amien Rais attacked unscrupulous
officials and organizers who, he said, exploited pilgrims.
"Don't treat the prospective pilgrims like they are a milk
cow," he said. "Stop this exploitation of prospective pilgrims by
irresponsible people."
He warned that if prospective pilgrims were so poorly treated
they might be driven to hold protests, which might create even
greater problems.
"This (situation) could stir up trouble, which, in turn, could
be manipulated by certain groups of people," he said. "Pilgrims
are basically honest people, so don't let them become the targets
of extortion."
However, he admitted that some of the problems that emerged
prior to and during the sending of this year's haj pilgrims could
not be separated from the surprising increase in the number of
people registering to go on the pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi
Arabia.
Amien called for improvements to haj management and the
quality of officials. "The chaos is partly caused by some
officials' poor preparation in handling the increase in the
number of haj pilgrims," he said.
"This should be a lesson for future haj operations," he
concluded.
Amidhan yesterday reassured prospective pilgrims from Jakarta
who have had their departure delayed that the government was
doing its best to solve the problem.
He said the authorities had processed 23,944 passports and
visas for Jakarta's pilgrims, but had yet to issue documents for
the remaining 7,010 pilgrims who registered in the capital.
Amidhan put some of the blame on the pilgrims themselves for
lacking discipline and attempting, for instance, to jump the
queue for visas.
He was at pains to point out that the Saudi Arabian embassy
here had worked hard in processing the visas. The embassy has
been issuing 5,000 to 10,000 visas every day.
Meanwhile, the Indonesian consulate in Jeddah announced on
Saturday that two female pilgrims from East Kalimantan had died
of heart attacks on Friday.
The ministry announced that Minister of Religious Affairs
Tarmizi Taher, together with director of haj guidance Dr. M.
Bambang Pranowo, arrived in Jeddah on Friday for further talks
with Saudi officials about the haj quota.
Tarmizi is undertaking a last minute campaign to convince
Saudi Arabia to allow more Indonesian pilgrims to go.
As of Saturday, according to the ministry's records, a total
of 26,668 pilgrims have departed for Saudi Arabia on 63 flights.
(swe)