MINA, 11 January 2006 — The government is constantly investing in facilities to improve the Haj experience for all pilgrims, unfortunately some misinformed Muslims abuse the government’s generosity. Such behavior was clearly witnessed yesterday in the form of squatters on the shaded pedestrian corridor that runs from Makkah to Mina and Arafat.
This corridor was constructed at enormous expense to protect pedestrian pilgrims from vehicular traffic on this crowded route. During Haj, the pedestrian corridor allows pilgrim who choose to perform Haj on foot in the traditional manner to do so with a degree of comfort. An unintended consequence of creating this vast covered track is that pilgrims without accommodation squat anywhere along the corridor with their belongings.
Some of the pilgrims are illegal. They enter Makkah a few days before Haj and wait in cramped hotel rooms or the homes of friends and relatives until the Haj rituals begin. At this point they don their ihrams and blend in with the crowd. They will sleep rough along the way and offer up their “hardship” for Allah.
There is generally no checking of permits after passing Makkah’s checkpoints at the entrance to the holy city, so there is no official hindrance to their participation in Haj. Most of these illegal pilgrims are expatriates working in the Kingdom’s cities.
There are other pilgrims who squat within the pedestrian corridor who are not there illegally, technically speaking, because these pilgrims have been issued permits. However, they have no accommodations at the holy sites and, according to current regulations, it is supposed to be impossible to obtain a Haj permit without showing proof of registration with a mutawwif organization. The presence of these “legal” squatters shows that there are loopholes in the system.
It is important to point out these squatters are not Saudis. In fact, possibly every other Asian and Arab nationality except Saudi is represented extensively among the squatters. The reason for this is cultural: Saudis tend to be very particular about not exposing their families to public view and so would always arrange accommodations.
Those Saudis from in and around Makkah performing Haj come out to the holy sites in their large SUVs and immediately after spending the night in Muzdalifah, return to their homes.
It is well known that the squatters in the pedestrian corridors are a hazard to all. Huge banners stretched across the corridor’s pillars advise: “Don’t block the road.” The banners depict security officers trying to direct people not to sit in the pedestrian corridor. Still, a large numbers of squatters can be observed within sight of the banners.
These squatters spread out their mats in the corridors, using their bundles of belongings as pillows. Laughing and chattering with abandon, family groups can be seen passing around fruit and biscuits. One fully expects that, given the opportunity, they would fire up a barbecue grill. Meanwhile, exhausted pilgrims returning from Muzdalifah to Mina to stone the Jamrat must pick their way around the squatters. The filth that the squatters leave behind when they move on is too sickening to describe.
On Sunday, security forces were forcing the squatters to move along. However, the moment the officers were out of sight, new squatters took up positions in the covered corridor. Yesterday no effort was being made to move them.
One diplomat told Arab News that he was certain that if the Saudi authorities so desired they had the means to stop these squatters. He pointed out that Haj is only mandatory for those who can afford it. If people are not of the means, they have no obligation to perform Haj. Additionally, Muslim community leaders should voice disapproval when any one of their community members boasted of performing Haj multiple times. Some newspapers have published reports of people who have performed the rituals more than a dozen times.
K. Rahman Khan, deputy chairman of India’s Upper House of Parliament, who is leading the Indian goodwill delegation, said that if people within the Kingdom are not being allowed to perform Haj more than once in five years then there is no reason for anyone from outside to be allowed more than that. He emphasized that the Haj committees should play an active role in stopping Haj repeaters.
“Pilgrims coming from abroad who save for decades and pay well for the privilege of performing their duty, should not be forced to cope with the mess, inconvenience and potential danger of squatters,” said an official at the South Asian Establishment for Pilgrims. “They need to be stopped.”
