"Their (elderly pilgrims') hope is getting lower every year, with such a long queue (of prospective Hajj pilgrims) like now," National Hajj and Umrah Commission Chairperson Mustolih Siradj stated here on Monday.
Earlier, Religious Affairs Minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas and Hajj and Umrah Minister of Saudi Arabia Tawfiq Al-Rabiah inked an agreement on Indonesia's 2023 Hajj quota in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on Sunday.
Related news: Indonesia's 2023 Hajj pilgrim quota capped at 221 thousand
In the agreement, Indonesia's Hajj pilgrim quota in 2023 is capped at 221 thousand, comprising 203,320 for regular Hajj pilgrims and 17,680 for special Hajj pilgrims. In addition, it was agreed that there would be no age limit for Hajj pilgrims this year.
"We highly appreciate the achievement of Minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas and his staff, who have worked hard for months to gain the trust of the King of Saudi Arabia to obtain a normal quota of 221 thousand people. Moreover, there is no age limit for pilgrims," he affirmed.
Siradj is upbeat about the Ministry of Religious Affairs continuing to lobby the Government of Saudi Arabia to increase the quota for Indonesia, considering that on average, the waiting time for pilgrims has touched tens of years.
In 2022, Indonesia's Hajj pilgrim quota was capped at only 100,510 people, with a maximum age limit of 65 years.
Meanwhile, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, no Indonesian Hajj pilgrim departed in 2020 and 2021. This condition has made the queue longer. With total registered prospective Hajj pilgrims of around 5.5 million people, the waiting time, on average, reached 55 years nationally.
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Translator: Asep Frimansyah, Raka Adji
Editor: Yuni Arisandy Sinaga
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