Minister Of Religion Hopes Saudi Government Will Not Limit The Age Of Pilgrims Candidates For Hajj
Minister of Religion (Menag) Nasaruddin Umar hopes that the Government of Saudi Arabia will not limit the age of prospective pilgrims who will go to the Holy Land and should be determined based on health conditions, not age factors.
"We ask that the criteria that will be used as the subject of Hajj later are istitha'ah in terms of health, not in terms of age," said Minister of Religion Nasaruddin Umar to Saudi Arabian Health Minister Fahad Abdulrahman Al-Jalajel in Jakarta, Monday, February 24, as reported by ANTARA.
According to the Minister of Religion, many Indonesian Hajj candidates are elderly, but are still in excellent physical condition and are able to carry out the pilgrimage well.
"Because in Indonesia there are people more than 90 years old who are still very strong. There are also those who are less than 90 years old but already weak. So I ask the Minister of Health of Saudi Arabia that what will be used as a benchmark later is the ability from a physical perspective, not from a age measure," said the Minister of Religion.
The Minister of Religion said that if there were changes in the rules related to the age limit for pilgrims for Hajj candidates, the Government of Saudi Arabia is expected to give Indonesia one year to disseminate information to the public.
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This socialization is important so that prospective pilgrims can understand the new rules and prepare themselves well.
"If there is a change in age, for example the determination of a certain age, please give us one year to do socialization. Because if suddenly, we will have a bit of difficulty in conducting socialization," said the Minister of Religion.