T

he Religious Affairs Ministry says it will be business as usual for Indonesians who wish to go on the haj or umrah (minor haj) this year despite reports of a rising death toll from the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) in Saudi Arabia, including a Malaysian who went on the umrah.

The 54-year-old Malaysian, who died on April 13 after complaining of flu-like symptoms after returning to Malaysia, was the first known Southeast Asian to have contracted the disease since its discovery in 2012. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 243 confirmed cases of MERS infection had occurred and 93 deaths since September 2012.

Most of the cases were found in either Saudi Arabia or the United Arab Emirates, although several cases have found their way to Europe. '€œWe will not be implementing any new policies to limit the number of people going on the haj or umrah in connection to this disease because there has not been any new notice from the Saudi Arabian government recommending we do so or warning us of MERS,'€ Anggito Abimanyu, the ministry'€™s director general for the haj and umrah, told The Jakarta Post over the telephone on Wednesday.

According to the ministry, 168,800 Indonesians went on the haj in 2013. The same number is expected to go on the haj this year.

Anggito explained that regular health procedures would still apply for Indonesians going on the haj or umrah.

Indonesians who go on the haj or umrah must undergo medical checkups and receive certain vaccinations. The Saudi Arabian Ministry of Hajj states that people who wish to obtain a visa to go on the haj must be vaccinated against meningitis and yellow fever.

Director general of disease control and environmental health Tjandra Yoga Aditama also said that it was not necessary for the government to implement stricter health regulations to prevent the disease from entering the country because there was no evidence of sustainable human-to-human transmission.

He cited a recent WHO statement saying that the International Health Regulations (IHR) Emergency Committee did not consider MERS a global health emergency as of September 2013.

MERS is considered a deadlier but less-transmissible cousin of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), which erupted in Asia in 2003 and infected 8,273 people, 9 percent of whom died.

The Philippine Daily Inquirer reported on Wednesday that Manila had advised Philippine embassies in the Middle East that Filipinos would be required to present a clearance showing that they were negative for MERS before they would be allowed to return home.

The respiratory illness presents symptoms including fever, breathing problems and kidney failure. A recent study said the virus had been common in camels for at least 20 years, and may have been passed directly from the animals to humans.

'€œThe transmission of MERS is not as worrying as we thought back in 2012, and that is why we haven'€™t issued any travel warnings for those planning to go on the haj or umrah. The same applies to cargo coming to and from Saudi Arabia,'€ Tjandra said.

He added that the respiratory illness had yet to spread to holy cities such as Mecca and Medina and so was not an urgent concern for pilgrims.

As of April 22, Saudi Arabian authorities reported another death in Riyadh and Jeddah, home to the King Abdulaziz International Airport, bringing the total of deaths in Saudi Arabia to 71. Most pilgrims arrive at this airport in Jeddah before traveling to either Mecca or Medina.

Although the government has yet to implement any new policies for those traveling to the Middle East, Tjandra said that the Health Ministry would continue to raise awareness of the importance of health and hygiene during pilgrims'€™ travels because there was no vaccine for MERS. (fss)