Don't Worry, This January The Ministry Of Religion Ensures That Pilgrims Can Go For Umrah As Soon As Possible, But The Number Is Limited

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JAKARTA - The Ministry of Religion (Kemenag) rebuked the Muslim Association of Hajj and Umrah Organizers of the Republic of Indonesia (AMPHURI) for violating the agreement after dispatching 84 leaders of Umrah Travel Organizers (PPIU) on December 30-31.

The reason is, on December 23 it was approved that 25 advance teams from AMPHURI left for Saudi Arabia. However, it turned out that at the end of 2021, those who were dispatched exceeded the agreement. Even though there was a delay in departure until January 2.

It is known, the delay was after President Jokowi and the Minister of Religion directed not to travel abroad.

So, when can Indonesian Umrah pilgrims go to the Holy Land?

Director of Hajj Umrah, Director General of Hajj and Umrah Organizers at the Ministry of Religion, Nur Arifin, confirmed that the government will dispatch Umrah pilgrims this January.

"Alhamdullilah, on January 3 we had a meeting with various ministries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Indonesian Embassy in Riyadh, the Indonesian Consulate General in Jeddah, the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Transportation and the COVID-19 Task Force," said Nur Arifin when contacted by VOI, Wednesday, January 5.

From the results of the meeting, Nur Arifin explained that a limited number of Umrah is allowed. Furthermore, the Ministry of Religion is waiting for a list of prospective Umrah pilgrims from the Umrah Travel Organizer (PPIU).

"The point is that there is no ban on going abroad. The call to refrain from going abroad means to hold back the amount, don't overdo it, stay under the control of the COVID-19 Task Force, so we are currently writing a letter to the PPIU to send a list of names for the January Umrah participants. So as soon as possible there will be umrah soon," he said.

"After the names are collected, we map them out, at least in the near future we will use the concept of a one-door flight from Pondok Gede Hajj Dormitory, there is a solution there (synchronizing tawakkalna and PeduliLindungi)," he said.