RI makes last bid for bigger haj quota
RI makes last bid for bigger haj quota
JAKARTA (JP): The government has sent the secretary general of
the Ministry of Religious Affairs, Zarkowi Soejoti, to Riyadh on
another mission seeking a higher quota for Indonesian haj
pilgrims this year.
Zarkowi left on Monday and will be in Riyadh until Saturday to
discuss the possibility of accommodating some 36,000 additional
Indonesian pilgrims.
With the countdown to the first flights taking Indonesian
pilgrims to Mecca underway, Zarkowi's trip appears to be a last-
ditch attempt. The first flights are scheduled to leave the
country on April 3.
Some 231,000 Indonesian have registered for this year's haj
pilgrimage, while Indonesia's quota is set only at 195,000.
Minister of Religious Affairs Tarmizi Taher last month
traveled to Riyadh to negotiate a higher quota. He returned empty
handed but he remained hopeful that something would come up
before the beginning of the pilgrimage.
Tarmizi's office coordinates transport, accommodation and
counsel for Indonesia's pilgrims.
Tarmizi has warned people not to try to circumvent the
government by making their own private arrangements since they
will be denied entry to Saudi Arabia.
He was referring to those who intend to travel on ordinary
green passports instead of the brown passports issued specially
for the government trip.
The Ministry of Religious Affairs has already issued 130,000
passports for the 195,000 enlisted. These will soon be sent to
the Saudi Arabian embassy in Jakarta for visa stamps.
Yesterday, legislator Ida Yusi Dahlan of the Golkar faction,
said that the government should fight hard for the additional
visas to accommodate all the 231,000 pilgrims.
She said if these 36,000 could not be accommodated this year,
they should be given first priority next year. They should also
be exempted from any cost increases.
Meanwhile, many would-be pilgrims in the region have expressed
anxiety, not knowing whether they will be able to travel or if
they will end up on the waiting list.
The local offices of the Ministry of Religious Affairs have
been flooded with inquiries from eager pilgrims demanding to know
their precise status and when their flights will depart. (29)