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Mecca crane victims to get compensation despite court ruling: Ministry
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The crane collapse in 2015 killed 111 people and wounded hundreds of others. (JP/Primastuti Handayani)
T
he Foreign Ministry clarified that Indonesian pilgrims who were killed or injured by the crane collapse over the Grand Mosque, in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, in 2015 will still get compensation from the Saudi kingdom, even though a recent court ruling said that no diyyah (blood money) would be given to them.
The Summary Court in Mecca exonerated the 13 crane operators who oversaw the falling crane, saying that the incident happened naturally and that “there was no human element behind it.”
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Arrmanatha Nasir said that the court's decision would not affect the Saudi government's promise to provide financial compensation for the victims.
“Diyyah and compensation are two different things,” he told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.
Diyyah is financial compensation paid to the victim of a murder or manslaughter by the party found guilty of the crime by the court.
“The compensation from the Saudi government is still on. But we will look at it again to check when it will be given,” Arrmanatha said.
In August, the Indonesian ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Agus Maftuh Abegebriel, said he had received a diplomatic note from the Saudi government saying diyyah would soon be given to the victims and their families.
“The Saudi government is ready to give the money to the victims,” Agus said on the Religious Affairs Ministry's official website.
Eleven Indonesians were killed and 49 were injured in the crane incident, which killed a total of 111 pilgrims and wounded hundreds of others.
Saudi Arabia had agreed to provide 1 million riyals in compensation for each dead victim and 500,000 riyals for every wounded one. However, until today none of the victims have received any compensation. (ahw)
