"We have sent a diplomatic note asking for access for the Indonesian medical team and doctors to directly check the bodies when these are unloaded from a container," Indonesias Religious Affairs Minister Lukman Hakim Saifuddin, who is the leader of the Indonesian pilgrims, said here on Monday.
He said it would help expedite the identification process as they just needed to see the bodies physically to identify them and would not have to wait for the release of photos or scrutinize the files of pilgrims from 25 countries who had died in the incident.
"We kept making diplomatic contact and communication with the Saudi side with regard to handling of the victims (to expedite the process)," he said.
He said until 2pm Monday Saudi time, the Saudi government had released 1,107 photos of pilgrims who had died in Mina.
"This afternoon, we received a report from the hajj committee that there are still five containers containing dead bodies that have not yet been unloaded," he said, adding one container contained tens of bodies.
Minister Lukman said all Indonesian pilgrims who died in the Mina incident would be buried in Mecca.
"This is the custom here. Starting this afternoon, the Mina victims who have been identified will be buried in Mecca," he said.
Minister Lukman offered an apology to the families of the victims and the public if the hajj committee was being perceived as having been too slow in handling the victims bodies although the fact was that they had worked round the clock.
"We needed to conduct the identification process very carefully to ensure that all victims are properly identified and accounted for," he said.
Following the stampede incident in Mina on Thursday morning, a total of 41 Indonesian pilgrims have been found dead and 10 others are being treated in hospitals while yet another 82 still remain unaccounted for.
Four Indonesian citizens, who stayed and worked in Saudi Arabia, had also been found dead in the incident.
"We will keep looking for pilgrims who fell victims in the incident until all of them are found, even if we have to work until after October 26 which is the last day for the Indonesian hajj pilgrims to return to the country," the minister said.(*)
Editor: Heru Purwanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2015
