Canceling The Hajj, Minister Of Religion Fachrul Razi Is Considered To Have Committed A Violation

JAKARTA - The Decree of the Minister of Religion, Fachrul Razi, regarding the cancellation of Hajj departures in 2020, is considered to violate statutory regulations. Fachrul's decision violated Law Number 8 of 2019 concerning the Implementation of Hajj and Umrah.

The cancellation of the pilgrimage departure must be decided with the DPR through a working meeting. Not decided unilaterally. This was conveyed by Commission VIII DPR RI Yandri Susanto.

Yandri said, the working meeting to discuss the implementation of Hajj in 2020 was supposed to be held on 4 June. However, Fachrul actually announced the cancellation without a valid mechanism.

The Ministry of Religion, he said, had actually sent a letter to the Indonesian Parliament. However, because it was in a recess, it was finally decided to hold the meeting on Thursday, 4 June using the face-to-face method.

"We have scheduled a work meeting on the day after tomorrow, June 4 at 10.00 WIB with the permission of the DPR leadership for a work meeting with the Minister of Religion," Yandri told reporters, Tuesday, June 2.

This member of the DPR from the PAN faction then said that such a decision needs to be made jointly between the ministers and the DPR RI as working partners. "It was agreed upon by all with the DPR, including very important matters like this. The DPR must jointly decide whether to cancel it or not," he said.

"We don't know what Saudi Arabia's report was. What if Saudi Arabia suddenly allows our pilgrims to leave next week, what do we do," the politician added.

With this decision, Yandri then said that the working meeting between the Minister of Religion and Commission VIII of the DPR RI was no longer needed and this clearly violated the existing decision.

"If the Minister is like this, I don't know the minister understands or not, the state regulations," he said.

He then said, if the government seemed unprepared to face the problem of the pilgrims in the midst of the COVID-19 outbreak. He even said that the government seems to have dumped the body with the current condition of the congregation.

"The Ministry of Religion reads the laws. Don't mess around," he said.

In line with Yandri, Deputy Chairperson of Commission VIII DPR RI Ace Hasan Syadzily also stated, Minister of Religion Fachrul should hold a meeting first regarding further steps to be taken regarding the implementation of the haj pilgrimage in 2020.

"Indeed, the Minister of Religion has sent a letter to Commission VIII DPR to hold a meeting related to the Hajj but because it is still in a recess in accordance with statutory provisions, it must obtain approval from the DPR RI Leadership. Until now there has been no such approval letter," said Ace.

The Golkar Party politician then regretted the attitude of Minister of Religion Fachrul who took decisions without a meeting in accordance with the applicable laws. "Of course we regret the attitude of the Minister of Religion who will announce this policy without first meeting with Commission VIII," he said.

Previously reported, the government through the Minister of Religion Fachrul Razi stated that it would not send pilgrims to the Hajj in 2020 or 1441 Hijriah.

One of the considerations for this decision is the adequacy of a longer time. Because, when choosing to continue sending prospective pilgrims to the pilgrimage, they have to go through a long quarantine period. Pilgrims must be quarantined for two weeks at home before leaving for Saudi Arabia. Then, return to quarantine upon arrival and after returning to their homeland.

Another consideration for cancellation of hajj departures is the matter of maintaining physical distance during worship. This is a concern because pilgrims must implement health protocols to prevent transmission of COVID-19. Maintaining physical distance must also be done during the journey to Saudi Arabia, during the prayer process, until arriving back home.

Then, this step was taken because the Saudi Arabian government has also never opened Hajj access from any country. So, the government does not have enough time to make preparations related to services and protection of the congregation.

With these considerations, it was decided not to send the hajj pilgrims in 2020 and it was stated in the Decree of the Minister of Religion of the Republic of Indonesia number 494 of 2020 concerning the dismissal of pilgrims.

In making this decision, continued Fachrul, the Ministry of Religion had coordinated with Commission VIII DPR-RI and the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) both formally and informally.

"Of course the Ministry of Religion has also communicated with our partner Commission VIII in the DPR about the development of this situation, both through formal communication with work meetings and direct informal communication," said Minister of Religion Fachrul Razi in his online press conference.

This cancellation applies to all Indonesians, whether using regular or special visas. That way, the Hajj trip in 2020 will be temporarily closed due to the COVID-19 period. This decision was taken to maintain the health of the Indonesian people.