JEDDAH, 25 March 2004 — Crown Prince Abdullah, deputy premier and commander of the National Guard, has instructed the Court of Grievances to look into complaints by 38 Umrah companies about huge fines imposed on them by the Passports Department.
Muhammad Abu Milha, owner of an Umrah company, who met the crown prince in Riyadh along with representatives of other firms, said Prince Abdullah had promised to solve their problems.
Abu Milha said the SR3,000 fine imposed by the Passports Department on Umrah companies for each overstaying pilgrim was affecting the business of some 200 companies.
“The problem is related to the implementation of the Iqama law on pilgrims,” the businessman said, adding that the law should not have been imposed on pilgrims.
The Passports Department imposed the fine on Umrah companies as part of its efforts to stop the phenomenon of overstaying pilgrims.
The owners of Umrah companies have requested the crown prince to arrange a meeting with officials of the Haj, Foreign and Interior Ministries to discuss the problems facing the industry.
The businessmen met with the crown prince when their talks with the Passports Department on abrogating the fines failed to produce any result.
Crown Prince Meets Women NHRA Members
In another development, female members of the recently established National Human Rights Association have presented a proposal to the crown prince on setting up a separate body for women and family.
Al-Jowhara Al-Anqari, a member of the association’s executive council, said their meeting with Prince Abdullah was encouraging. “We had presented a number of issues and the crown prince promised that he would facilitate our mission,” she added.
“If this independent organization succeeds in defending human rights in all areas I think it would bring about big change,” Al-Eqtisadiah daily quoted Al-Anqari as saying.
“We also discussed measures for implementing laws because many women, especially divorcees, often lose their rights because of badly implemented rules and regulations,” she said.
Al-Anqari said they also stressed the need to revise the civil rights code for women.
Dr. Noura Al-Yousuf, another member, said their meeting with the crown prince on Monday lasted an hour. “Our association has started receiving complaints on family issues,” she added.
