JAKARTA - The Indonesian Ministry of Religion (Kemenag) is trying to expand the departure gates for Indonesian Umrah worshipers from several other provinces so that pilgrims who depart are not only concentrated from the capital Jakarta.
The Director General of Hajj and Umrah Organization (PHU) of the Ministry of Religion, Hilman Latief, said the policy needed to be carried out on the basis of the high public interest in performing Umrah even though it was still in the midst of COVID-19.
"God willing, in the near future many will be able to fly (umrah pilgrims). We also propose that from Makassar, from Medan, they can go so they don't have to go to Jakarta," Hilman said in Banda Aceh, Friday, March 11.
He explained that so far the government is still implementing a one-gate policy scheme for Umrah departures. So that all pilgrims from every province in the country must leave for Saudi Arabia from Jakarta.
The Indonesian government began releasing pilgrims for Umrah in early January 2022 after the last few years not sending pilgrims due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
Until now, said Hilman, more than 40,000 people have left for Umrah pilgrims from Indonesia to the Holy Land, so it is necessary to expand the one-door policy.
"Alhamdulillah, there have been more than 40 thousand Indonesian Umrah pilgrims. So the one-door policy will be expanded, yes," said Hilman.
Indeed, Hilman said, the Government of Saudi Arabia no longer enforces policies that require Umrah pilgrims to wear masks, maintain distance, follow quarantine, and show negative results of the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) swab test.
Nevertheless, the Indonesian government still wants to ensure that the departing Umrah pilgrims have received a complete COVID-19 vaccination.
"Because if there is no PCR, there is no quarantine, so in the end, they are completely vaccinated. We urge the congregation to be aware to complete their vaccinations," he said.
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