A continuously increasing number of Indonesian Muslims performing umrah (minor haj) to the Islamic holy land of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, has led to an increase in travel agencies offering trip packages throughout predominantly Muslim Indonesia. There are over 800 agencies catering to the lucrative business. Their sheer number, fierce competition and poor state oversight have led to widespread fraudulence committed by rogue traders exploiting people’s ignorance and limited knowledge. The Jakarta Post’s Corry Elyda, who recently went on an umrah, takes a closer look into the issue.

Fifty-year-old Rita Mala Rachmad never thought that her umrah in March this year would turn into a nightmare for her three in-laws, who became victims of a fraudulent travel agency that she recommended. Rita performed umrah in March using a service provided by Bogor-based Amani Madinah Tour and Travel agency. Satisfied with the service, the Lampung resident then recommended the travel company to her relatives.

However, since transferring Rp 66 million (US$4,966) to the travel company’s director for her in-laws’ trip, their flights have been rescheduled three times with no certainty on a departure date as no one was able to contact the director. It was reported that the director had fled, taking the in-laws’ money and that of other potential pilgrims.

Overwhelmed with guilt for potentially having lost the money, Rita has been living in a nightmare, suffering from anxiety, lack of sleep and irregular heartbeats. Her nightmare is but one of countless umrah fraud cases taking a toll on folks like her: tour operators close as soon as they rake in billions of rupiah from unsuspecting pilgrim hopefuls who have no way of getting their money back.

Amani Madinah has been in the media spotlight for allegedly deserting hundreds of clients in May. The company left 50 umrah pilgrims stranded at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Malaysia as it only provided the pilgrims with flight tickets from Jakarta to Kuala Lumpur — not to Mecca. Amani Madinah is the latest example of the many deceitful travel agencies exploiting less informed pilgrims.

Umrah is a non-mandatory Muslim pilgrimage often as part of the haj. However, in contrast to the haj, umrah can be undertaken at any time of the year.

Umrah has been popular as the journey allows Indonesian Muslims to have spiritual experiences in the city, where Islamic teachings were first revealed to Prophet Muhammad, without having to wait for years as what happens when applying for the compulsory haj. With the latest annual haj quota set by the Saudi government at only 231,000, a Muslim who wants to perform haj must wait for a decade or more before going.

Data from the Religious Affairs Ministry shows a 63.6 percent jump in the number of umrah pilgrims to 818,000 in 2016, from only 500,000 in 2012. This year, the Saudi Embassy in Jakarta has predicted that the number of umrah pilgrims will reach up to 1 million people.

As more and more people are interested in performing umrah, the religious ritual has turned into a lucrative business with many companies offering both premium and economic packages and services. There are 847 registered umrah operators at the ministry with business turnover estimated at around US$1 billion annually, according to the Association of Haj and Umrah Private Operators.

However, lack of monitoring and supervision from the authority has made the business prone to scams. In many cases, potential pilgrims from small cities become an easy target with companies exploiting their lack of information and naivety. Yet, fraudulent practices happen across the board, both on customers paying premium prices and discounted prices.

Many people have fallen victim to promotional packages offered by travel companies that promise discounted prices. One such case involves PT First Anugerah Karya Wisata (First Travel) that offered a package at Rp 14.3 million or 30 percent less than the suggested price. The low price has lured thousands of people from all corners of the nation to register even though they have to wait one year before traveling.

The problem began in March this year when hundreds of customers started to flock to First Travel’s headquarters on Jl. TB Simatupang in South Jakarta after their trips were delayed several times. No official number on disappointed customers was available, but First Travel was reportedly scheduled to send 70,000 customers on flights to the holy land.

“We, however, are committed to continue sending our customers to perform umrah,” First Travel representative Andika said during a press conference in April.

The Religious Affairs Ministry has initiated mediation efforts between its management and the customers. However, the management of First Travel did not show up to three scheduled meetings, while the ministry has not done much to reprimand the company despite a constant flow of complaints against the travel agency. Fearing they will not get their money back, no customers have brought the case to the police.

The umrah director at the ministry’s umrah and special haj directorate general, M. Arfi Hakim, said his team was investigating the case.

“We have to scrutinize the case first before deciding on anything,” he said, adding that penalties against First Travel await in the form of written warnings or permit revocations if the agency is proven to have violated regulations.

Regulations require travel operators offering umrah trips to obtain permits from the ministry and provide trip packages that include transportation, meals, tour guides and accomodation at a 3-star hotel at least.

In the last two years, the ministry has revoked operational permits for 17 travel agencies due to poor services. However, scams and ticket fraud may be the bigger issue.

The association recorded that 11,000 people from October 2015 to October 2016 were unable to partake in planned trips after becoming victims of umrah business scams. Meanwhile, 900 people were unable to return home from Mecca earlier this year after falling to ticket scams.

The ministry’s umrah and special haj director general, Muhajirin, called on potential pilgrims to be cautious of packages offering low prices.

“We need to be careful [...] If the price is too cheap, the facilities too good, it is usually a scam,” he said.

He also found that some travel agencies adopted the Ponzi scheme in their packages, sending a pilgrim, for example, on umrah using money coming from 10 other pilgrims recruited by companies or the Mecca-bound pilgrim. The system tumbles when the companies fail to get new clients. This malpractice is rampant in Makassar, South Sulawesi; Surabaya, East Java; Medan, North Sumatra; and Jakarta.

Yet, despite the widespread malpractice, the ministry still has not made significant moves. It set up a new directorate general for umrah business earlier this year, but it lacks experience and resources to handle all the cases. It hopes the cases will be resolved by the companies themselves.

“We can’t really process the cases when the tour companies have conveyed their good intention to resolve them,” said Muhajirin.

Learning from the First Travel case, relying on good intentions does not solve the problem, which involves not only opportunistic travel operators and innocent customers, but also an ignorant authority.

As for Rita, she has to deal with the consequences of getting scammed. Perhaps she should have sensed something was wrong when the travel company broke its promise to take pilgrims to Turkey for sightseeing en route to Mecca and warned her relatives. She now feels responsible for losing her relatives’ money to an unreliable travel agency.

As of the publication of this article, management from First Travel and Amani Madinah could not be contacted for comments.

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Tips for avoiding fraudulent umrah packages

* Check the status of travel agencies; they should be registered on the Religious Affairs Ministry website (haji.kemenag.go.id/v3/basisdata/daftar-ppiu)

* Read news and reviews of these travel agencies in online forums

* Be cautious about prices and compare them with others

* Select your departure dates

* Ask for issued booking codes or tickets for return flight

* Avoid flights with many transits

* Ensure visas are already in hand (eservices.haj.gov.sa/eservices3/pages/VisaInquiry/SearchVisa.xhtml?dswid=42)

* Scrutinize the purchasing agreement contract offered by travel agencies to know your rights if their services are not fulfilled

* Umrah packages should be full service, including transportation, accommodation, meals, baggage handling at the airport, a guide and a stay at a three-star hotel as required by the Religious Affairs Ministry

* Be cautious with re-scheduled trips

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