There Is A Letter From Saudi Arabia, The Minister Of Religion Of Yaqut Must Explain The Cancellation Of Hajj

Chairman of the PAN DPR Faction Saleh Partaonan Daulay/ Facebook

JAKARTA - The PAN faction of the DPR RI has asked the Ministry of Religion to explain openly the decision to cancel the departure of Indonesian Hajj pilgrims in 2021.

This follows the circulation of a letter from the Saudi Arabian Embassy for Indonesia to the Indonesian House of Representatives which was written very quickly and signed by the Ambassador of the Servant of the Two Holy Cities to the Republic of Indonesia, Essam Bin Ahmed Abid Althaqafi, dated June 3, 2021.

In the letter, the Saudi Arabian Ambassador explained that until now the Saudi authorities have not issued any instructions regarding the organization of this year's Hajj. That also applies not only to Indonesia, but all other countries in the world.

Chairman of the PAN faction of the DPR RI, Saleh Partaonan Daulay, considered that the Ministry of Religion should have carried out intensive communication with the government of the kingdom of Saudi Arabia from the start. Because with the unilateral cancellation announced by the Minister of Religion Yaqut Cholil Qoumas yesterday, it will cause a polemic.

"From the letter that was circulated, there was a message that the Saudis were actually very open to discussing and communicating with Indonesia," Saleh told reporters, Friday, June 4.

Therefore, Saleh continued, it is natural for the PAN faction to ask what steps have been taken by the Ministry of Religion in seeking the implementation of the 2021 Hajj. Moreover, previously there was information circulating that Indonesian Hajj pilgrims could not be dispatched due to vaccination issues.

"Where are the vaccines used by our pilgrims who have not been registered on the WHO list. There was a scene. Is that true? This needs to be clarified. Because last week the Sinovac vaccine was listed on the WHO list. If that's the reason, it should be by now. dispatched," said the member of Commission IX of the DPR.

The former chairman of Commission VIII of the House of Representatives in charge of religion assessed that the issue of hajj departure would be a crucial issue. This is because this is the second year that Indonesia has not dispatched prospective pilgrims for Hajj.

Meanwhile, the queue will get longer and it is unclear when they will be able to depart.

"Is there a guarantee that he will leave next year? No, right? Last year was the same. He said he would go this year. In fact, he didn't. Then when?," Saleh asked.

According to him, Indonesia is lagging behind in conducting Hajj diplomacy with Saudi Arabia. From the news circulating, said Saleh, the Malaysian government had actually met with the crown prince of the Saudi kingdom.

"From that meeting, the Malaysian kingdom was promised to receive an additional 10,000 quota," he said.

For this reason, the North Sumatran legislator asked the Ministry of Religion to immediately provide an explanation regarding the letter from the Saudi Arabian Ambassador to the Indonesian parliament.

Furthermore, Saleh said, the Ministry of Religion needed to conduct direct negotiations regarding the plan for the departure of the hajj. It is hoped that this year, Indonesia will still be able to dispatch prospective hajj pilgrims, even with a reduced quota.

"Yesterday, the Ministry of Religion canceled the whole thing. Supposedly, the government still opens up opportunities to send pilgrims. At a minimum, pilgrims plus health protocol-based services,"

said Saleh.