Indonesia to launch massive haj operation today

JAKARTA (JP): Four wide-bodied jets will leave almost simultaneously from Jakarta, Medan, Surabaya and Ujungpandang this morning, marking the start of the massive operation to send more than 157,000 people for the haj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia.

They will all be flown eventually in 360 different flights between today and May 14.

This is the largest haj contingent Indonesia has ever dispatched to date, marking a significant jump from the 123,000 sent last year which was also a record.

Garuda Indonesia, the national carrier appointed to fly the pilgrims, has leased 16 wide-bodied jets for the purpose and has also assigned two from its own fleet.

The sending off ceremony will be held this morning at the Halim Perdanakusuma airport in Jakarta and besides Minister of Religious Affairs Tarmizi Taher, Minister of Information Harmoko, who is the Amirul Haj (chief of the contingent), will also be on hand to bid farewell to the first group.

The Ministry of Religious Affairs, which is coordinating the entire operation, said that a total of 157,491 people have registered and paid for the pilgrimage. In addition, 772 officials, airline crew and escorts will also take part, bringing the total to 158,263 people.

The Indonesian government has secured the accommodation in Saudi Arabia for a total of 160,000 pilgrims.

The organization of sending the haj pilgrims has become more complex each year, especially given that their number keep on rising. The situation has caused an Islamic scholar to liken the Haj to the U.S.'s Desert Storm military operation when it sent more than 200,000 troops from various nations to the deserts of Saudi Arabia to fight the Iraqi forces which were occupying Kuwait in 1990.

Director General of Air Transportation Sikado, during an unannounced inspection at the Halim Perdanakusuma airport, expressed his confidence that there would be no major problems during the departure. However, he did anticipate that some problems could occur on the return trip, which is slated to begin on May 24 through June 22.

The Idul Adha day, or the Sacrifice Day which is the peak of the haj pilgrimage, is slated to fall on May 21 according to Indonesian calendar. However, the final decision must await the sighting of the moon.

Sikado said there could be problems specially in the beginning of the return operation since people from various nations will all flock into the King Abdul Aziz airport and there could be massive congestion as there was in previous years.

The Saudi government however has agreed to allocate one gate at the airport for the Indonesian contingent given the huge size of the delegation, he said.

He also warned the pilgrims that the Garuda officials are under strict orders to enforce the maximum luggage allowance and will not tolerate anything in excess of the 30 kilogram allowed for each pilgrim.

If pilgrims insist on carrying more, they would have to be sent by ship and they will have to pay the costs, he said. He recalled that the excess luggage issue was one of the factors that caused delays in the past.

Meanwhile, Minister of Religious Affairs Tarmizi Taher warned yesterday that the government would clamp down hard on travel agents who have organized their own haj pilgrimage tours and said that people who joined in these tours are liable for deportation when they reach Saudi Arabia.

Tarmizi estimated that some 14,000 people have made their pilgrimage arrangement through unlicensed agents, some 10,000 flying through Singapore and the rest from Jakarta, flying on scheduled airlines.

These are the so-called "green passport" pilgrims since they are traveling on ordinary passports and not the passports issued specifically for haj pilgrims.

They are different from the VIP version of the pilgrimage which is organized by licensed tour operators and also using scheduled airlines.

Tarmizi believed that a major syndicate is behind the "green passport" pilgrimage tours, and estimated that it was grossing some Rp 1 billion from its operation.

The Saudi authorities have asked the Indonesian government to bring these pilgrims under control, he said. (emb)