Haj is a basic tenet of Islam but its meaning is lost in a sea of confusion in the holy cities
OF the three million people from some 160 countries of the world who performed Haj this year, about 150,000 were Pakistanis. I was one of them.
Most of the Pakistanis I met in the Kingdom at various places were screaming — not out of joy on having been ‘dry-cleaned’ of all the sins they had committed till setting foot on the holy lands, but because of the poor arrangements the government had made for them for their stay. Those who had paid huge amounts to get the best possible facilities, and others who had paid the minimum to get only an opportunity to perform the most important religious duty of their life, were yelling alike. The failure of the Pakistan government’s arrangements had been exposed at all tiers — and everywhere without exception. It appeared as if this was the first time that the government was making arrangements for Haj without any previous experience. And in case the situation is not reviewed at all stages, Haj for 2006 might be a yet worse experience.
The Saudi government should also reassess how many pilgrims it can easily accommodate. Three million target is not a realistic one, and in case the Saudi authorities do not bring it down to two, or even less, people converging on the holy lands on the call of the Lord of the Worlds, would continue to face a number of problems and difficulties. It must be debated at length as to who should be allowed to perform Haj.
Those who have not yet performed Haj should be given priority in the selection. And those who have already performed their religious duty should be allowed only if the number of fresh applicants are less than the quota fixed for the country.
Medical fitness of the intending pilgrims should be checked very strictly. The existing system has many loopholes and should be given up.
At present, banks issue fitness certificates to the applicants without actually examining them. As a result, people who are unable to walk or those facing a number of other problems are given a clean bill of health. This is unfair both to the applicants and others they will come across in the Kingdom while performing various rituals. Financial interests of the banks should get secondary importance.
The role of the banks in the group formation should also be discouraged. Banks form groups according to the same order they receive applications. As a result, the very spirit of group formation is scuttled. A clerk decides who should fall in which group — no matter whether the applicants know each other or not. No meeting of the groups is organized nor any serious effort is made to acquaint members of the same group with one other. The situation the pilgrims have to face in Saudi Arabia requires that members of a group should know each other very well. They should meet one another several times before proceeding to Saudi Arabia. The more acquaintance they have, the more helpful they will be to each other in the Kingdom. The role of the private tour operators has been far from satisfactory. ‘Most of them are fleecing the people on false promises’ a number of Hajis complained to the Religious Affairs Minister, Ejazul Haq at various places in Saudi Arabia. But sadly, neither did the order an inquiry into the complaints nor were the hardships, faced by the aged at the hands of their tour operators, redressed.
Many people are of the view that the government should exclude the role of the tour operators and take charge of the entire operation. Or else, the Haj operation should be privatized and the role of the government should be confined to that of a watchdog. The government-private sector partnership experience has not been quite enviable.
Diplomatic sources told Dawn in Madina that people responsible for acquiring buildings in various Saudi cities were responsible for most of the miseries of the Hajis this year. They had allegedly delayed the acquisition because of which people from other countries got better buildings at better locations and competitive rates. The left-over of the buildings were rented to the Pakistanis because of which they did not get quality accommodation.
Sources say that now that the Haj season is over, the government should immediately start searching for buildings for the next Haj. This is the most propitious time to get better buildings at good rates.
There is a dire need for the government to create awareness among Hajis about the importance of national dignity. Pakistanis, who just scramble to get free food from various charitable organizations, should be discouraged, and very seriously. Those who go to perform Haj are supposed to have adequate resources to meet their food requirements — or else they would not have decided to perform a ritual which has been enjoined only upon the people of resources.
But people rush to vans distributing free food or water. The experience of the 2005 Haj has shown that the idea of sending khuddamul hujjaj has been a disaster. Khuddam were selected by various departments and sent to the Kingdom at the state’s expense to serve the Hajis. If any Haji is in trouble, such people were duty-bound to help them. They are not supposed to perform Haj. But it transpired that they performed Haj like regular applicants — extending no service to the Hajis for who they had been sent. Many khuddam did not know what their duties were. And when they did not know their duties, they could not be expected to perform any.
Pakistan’s ambassador to Riyadh, Admiral Abdul Aziz Mirza told this correspondent in Madina that the khuddam should be selected on merit. “Sifarish,” he said, should never be a consideration.
Hajis had to face more problems in Mina, Arafat and Muzdalifa, the three places where they all have to be present at the same time.
Although the Saudi government has set up fireproof tents at Mina for the convenience of the Hajis, they can’t accommodate all three million people. Since the limits of Mina can’t be stretched for religious reasons, there is a need for Ijtehad, on the subject. If multi-storied buildings are set up there, with the concurrence of the religious scholars, maybe the situation can be eased to some extent.
Similarly, there is also a need for special transport arrangements to take Hajis from Mina to Arafat and then to Muzdalifa.
Leaving the people to the mercy of private transporters is not justified.
The Saudi government should think of setting up an underground railway service between the three places. Although it will be a gigantic project, it must be given a serious thought in view of the enormity of problems the ‘guests of Allah’ have to face here.
The conditions at Muzdalifa should also be improved to facilitate the Hajis during the single-night stay they are supposed to make under the open sky.
Inadequate arrangements were in place for the Hajis to perform ablution (wazoo) although they are ordained to offer three prayers here.
Although arrangements have been improved to facilitate the Hajis to stone the three satans (Jamarahs) near Mina, there is still room to improve them further. The possibility of setting up specially designed escalators between Mina and the three devils should also be looked into.
Aboard the escalators the Hajis will keep moving even during rummy (the process of stoning), reducing the likelihood of stampedes or traffic jams.
Separate rummy times should be set for various countries and it should be the duty of their respective governments to ensure that no old man or the one bound to a wheelchair goes to perform the ritual personally. It should also be ensured that no Haji carries any sort of baggage while proceeding for rummy.
It has also been noted that many Hajis get lost at various places and are unable to seek assistance from the co-religionists, mainly because of their inability to speak Arabic. Addresses on their wrists are also less helpful.
A senior diplomat thinks that all Hajis should be provided with maps. Every Haji should have a separate map on which the place of his residence should clearly be marked. In case he or she gets lost, the Haji can ask anyone to help him reach the place marked on his map. This simple step will yield quite encouraging results.
The duration of Hajis’ stay in the kingdom should also be reduced to a bare minimum.
Haj can be performed in about two weeks — five days of Haj and eights days in Madina (although many scholars say that it’s not mandatory to stay in Madina for eight days and offer 40 prayers there). A couple of more days for visit to other holy places and the stay should be over.
To ensure this, the government would have to arrange many more places to bring the Hajis back to Pakistan.
Officials say that under an agreement the PIA and the Saudia are supposed to carry the Hajis in equal numbers. But in practice, the PIA has to carry 90 per cent of the burden and for the rest of the passengers, PIA gives a $20 per passenger royalty to the Saudia.
It is said if arrangements can be made to bring back the Hajis, the stay in the Kingdom can be reduced to a fortnight. The staff posted in Saudi Arabia needs a change of mindset. At present, everyone of them, no matter how junior position he is holding, considers himself as important as the royalty. They think, as most of the government servants back in the motherland do, that helping anyone would lower their dignity. Such people should be taken to task — and very seriously. Many Pakistanis lost their baggage at various places during Haj and the staff at the embassy, the consulate or even the Pakistan Houses in Makkah and Madina, failed to extend any help.
They could have done a great service by preparing a list of the lost baggage available at various places and taking it to the relevant Hajis. The job could have been performed by a single man in Jeddah, in Makkah and Madina. And dozens of people would have benefited.
But nobody ever bothered to think of taking such a step. As a consequence, a number of Hajis returned home without their luggage.
Pakistan-based cellphone companies fleece Hajis during the Haj season. They internationalize a subscriber’s phone for a security of upto Rs20,000. But if a Haji were to take his mobile phone set with him and get a SIM from Saudi Arabia — which is available for 100 Saudia riyals (Rs1,600) and he is able to stay in touch with his family in Pakistan. Incoming calls in Saudi Arabia are free and the caller from Pakistan will not have to pay more than Rs25 a minute.
The Saudi market has been captured by the Chinese, Bangladeshi, Indian and Thai products. A number of items of religious importance — like rosaries and ehram — can easily be exported by Pakistan.
The Commerce Ministry and the Export Promotion Bureau must survey the Saudi market and see what items can be exported by Pakistan.
Haj is a basic tenet of Islam but its meaning is lost in a sea of confusion in the holy cities
