Jakarta (ANTARA) - Religious Affairs Minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas ensured that pilgrims entitled to go for Hajj in 2020 will depart for the Holy Land this year if the Saudi Arabian government opened the entrance for Indonesia's pilgrims.
"The pilgrims, who will depart in 1443 Hijri or 2022 AD, are those who have been registered to perform Hajj in 1441 Hijri or 2020 AD," Qoumas stated during a work meeting with Commission VIII of the House of Representatives on Monday.
The minister noted that no information had yet been received from the Saudi Arabian royal authorities regarding the organization of the pilgrimage, including the quota for pilgrims.
"Certainty had yet to be gained regarding the implementation of the 1443H/2022M Hajj. The Saudi Arabian government has not started a conversation regarding this matter," he pointed out.
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Nevertheless, the ministry will make preparations while referring to the three scenarios for the quota of pilgrims: the full quota of pilgrims, limited quota of pilgrims, or not sending Hajj pilgrims to Saudia Arabia.
"The government is currently still working on considering the full options," Qoumas stated.
The minister is optimistic that the Saudi Arabian government would immediately offer certainty regarding Hajj, considering that the time to prepare for the pilgrims' embarkation is limited.
Under normal conditions, the government needs certainty in terms of the quotas for Hajj pilgrims at least from December to January for embarkation of pilgrims in the first group in June.
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"This condition shows that the time remaining for the implementation of Hajj is only about four months. Given the wide scope of Hajj services, the time remaining is very limited, so we have to make various preparations," Qoumas noted.
In the last two years, the Indonesian government was unable to send pilgrims to the Holy Land due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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