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Govt to send 100,051 pilgrims on haj this year
The Religious Affairs Ministry is gearing up to send the first batch of Indonesian pilgrims to Mecca on June 4 under a reduced quota, prioritizing those whose trips were canceled in 2020 and 2021.
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Muslims pray to mark the end of Ramadan 2021 at the Kaaba, the holiest shrine in the Grand Mosque complex in Mecca, Saudi Arabia.
(AFP/Abdulghani ESSA )
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s the country continues to see a decline in the national COVID-19 caseload and reopens gradually, the government has announced it is allowing Muslims to go on haj this year after two years of restrictions that barred potential pilgrims from doing so.
Religious Affairs Minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas announced last week on the ministry’s website that it had set a quota of 100,051 haj pilgrims for 2022.
“After two years of not sending haj pilgrims because of COVID-19, alhamdulillah [praise be to God] for all of our efforts and prayers, this year we will again send [...] a quota of 100,051 haj pilgrims and 1,901 [haj] officers,” Yaqut said at an event last Tuesday to commemorate Nuzulul Quran, or the revelation of the Quran.
During a haj coordination meeting on Wednesday, Yaqut urged officials to work quickly and efficiently to prepare for this year’s haj, according to its website, particularly since the first batch of pilgrims were set to depart on June 4 for Mecca, Saudi Arabia.
“We have been struggling for the past few days to secure [Indonesia’s] haj quota. This time, we have to work hard so the haj [program] runs well and smoothly,” the minister said.
The ministry’s haj and umrah (minor haj) director general, Hilman Latief, said last week’s coordination meeting saw extensive discussions over numerous aspects of the 2022 pilgrimage program, including transportation, accommodation and insurance, as well as visa and vaccine requirements.
According to Hilman, the ministry was confident that the first batch of pilgrims would depart on schedule.
