Who has authority over holy sites?

By Santi W.E. Soekanto and Wisnu Pramudya

JAKARTA (JP): Khadimul haramain, the custodian of the two Islamic holy sites of Masjidil Haram, the Great Mosque in Mecca which houses the holy Kaaba; and Masjid Nabawi, the Prophet's Mosque in Medina.

For decades, this role of custodian has belong to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the "cradle of Islam", alone.

"Allah has singled us out to take care of the two holy cities. Allah has bestowed the honor on us," Saudi Arabian Ambassador Abdullah Abdurrahman Alim told The Jakarta Post. "We are perfectly capable of managing the haramain, of taking care of the haj pilgrims who are the guests of Allah..."

Saudi Arabia has spared nothing in providing the haj pilgrims in the two holy cities with facilities of transportation, health services and security in order to ensure the pilgrims' peace of mind while tending to their religious duties, he said.

Over the past decade, however, there have been growing calls from some Islamic states that Saudi Arabia involve other countries in running the haj operation. Iran, for instance, has more than once suggested that Saudi Arabia should not be the sole custodian of the holy places to which millions of Moslems from all over the world flock every year.

The reasons for such calls are as varied as the reasons for Saudi Arabia's resistance to them. Political and diplomatic, economical or even mere technical considerations are sounded off by many people.

However, it's likely that the question of whether to "internationalize" haj management, which would entail the question of management of the holy sites as well, will remain in the distant future.

Regarding the technical side, for instance, one needs only to consider the steady increase in the number of Moslems going on the pilgrimage. The massive task of tending to this year's 2.5 million pilgrims, for instance, is one that might benefit from the involvement of other countries.

The number of pilgrims will most likely continue to grow due to population growth and improved transportation and economies. There have been political changes which have opened doors for Moslems living in previously repressive states such the Soviet Union and China.

Saudi Arabia has been attempting to control the inflow of pilgrims by setting up in 1988 a quota of 1,000 pilgrims to every one million of a sending country's population. It has also tried to cope by siphoning great financial and other resources to add and improve facilities for the pilgrims.

"The kingdom is developing faster than many other countries, and we have spared nothing to give but the best for the pilgrims," Abdurrahman Alim said.

An example of this effort is the expansion of Masjidil Haram, which is the center of the haj ritual, so that it can accommodate up to 1 million people at a time.

The materials were carefully selected; its marble floor, for instance, remains cool to the touch even under the scorching sun of the Sahara. Other facilities, such as air-conditioned corridors on which the Moslems perform the rite of sa'i (walking or running from the hills of Safa to Marwa) are also examples of the Saudian effort.

"Mecca and the mosque are so comfortable, I can't imagine what it was like during Prophet Muhammad's days," one Indonesian pilgrim said.

Concerns, however, are still voiced about how the physical development of the holy sites can keep up with the increasing number of pilgrims. In 1990, for instance, around 500 people died in a stampede in the Mina tunnel, while in 1994, around 200 people died in a smaller-scale stampede during the ritual of stoning the three jamarat pillars.

OIC

For some countries, the above mentioned two accidents justifies their calls for the internationalization of the management of the holy cities and the haj management.

The idea itself is by no means new. In 1925, a leader of the Wahabi reform movement, Abdul Aziz bin Abdul Rahman al Saud, wrestled power over the Arab Peninsula from King Syarif Husain.

Al Saud then said that the holy sites, including Mecca, should be managed by an organization of Islamic states. He later changed his mind, and expressed doubt that such an organization would be capable of raising funds to run the holy cities.

Iran, however, is among the Islamic states which have renewed the call for the international management of the holy sites and haj. For over the past decade, Iran has brought up the issue again and again.

Iranian Ambassador S. Mohsen Nabavi pointed out that "haj pilgrimage is an international Islamic gathering", one which should not belong to one nation, race or country only.

"Haj pilgrimage belongs to all who have chosen Islam for salvation," he told the Post.

The involvement of other Islamic states would mean more resources and facilities for Mecca and Medina to accommodate even more pilgrims, he said.

In Indonesia, a number of observers support the idea of international custodianship for the holy cities. Among them is Riza Sihbudi, an expert of international relations and a researcher at the Indonesian Institute of Sciences.

"It's a realistic idea," he told the Post, suggesting that one of the most acceptable forms of international custodianship would be the conversion of the haramain into "international cities" under the auspices of the Organization of Islamic Conference.

Amien Rais, the chairman of the Muhammadiyah Moslem organization, expressed support for the idea but suggested a variation to the concept.

The expert of international relations at the Yogyakarta-based Gadjah Mada University said that although geographically Mecca and Medina belong to Saudi Arabia, "they are in essence something which belong to Moslems, and are dear to the hearts of Moslems all over the world".

"From year to year, Saudi Arabia has done its best to improve the running of the haj pilgrimage, but with the help of other Islamic states things would be even better," he said.

Amien, however, was more in support of the idea of "changing Mecca and Medina into something like New York, "where all members of the United Nations have representatives and manage the UN collectively."

"Politically, however, the United States has the authority over New York," he said.

Islamic states in the Organization of Islamic Conference could establish and then sit in a committee for the haj operation, supervising various stages involved so that there wouldn't be any monopolizing, he suggested.

"However, the political sovereignty over the two holy cities should remain in the hands of Saudi Arabia," he said.

There are also Indonesians opposed to the idea. Ali Yafie, a former leader of Indonesia's largest Moslem organization Nahdlatul Ulama, said several years ago that the concept of internationalizing haj management was nonsense.

Members of the Arabic League were preoccupied with the discord among them, he pointed out.

Lukman Harun, another leading member of Muhammadiyah, was also against the idea. "It's impossible, it would be trespassing on Saudi Arabia's sovereignty," he said several years ago.

"It's nonsense," Ambassador Abdurrahman Alim said forcefully. "The idea is preposterous. Would people accept if other countries try to rule the Vatican? Would you accept if your neighbors try to interfere with your household affairs?"