DAMMAM: Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal, chairman of the Supreme Haj Committee, has launched an awareness campaign entitled “Haj is Worship and Civilized Behavior” with 30 government and private authorities.
The campaign aims to ensure that pilgrims are provided the best possible services from the time they arrive until they leave, and reduce behavior that endanger others and detract from the sanctity of the event, said officials.
Hesham Al-Falih, chairman of the Haj executive and preparatory committee, said that the aim is to educate pilgrims from the Kingdom and abroad on the importance of abiding by Haj regulations.
The campaign seeks to eradicate illegal and disruptive behavior including performing Haj without a license, sleeping in the open and blocking passageways and roads, he said.
Hatem Qadi, adviser to the Haj minister, said: “The Ministry of Haj is participating in this awareness campaign. This includes meeting with all Haj missions in the Kingdom at the end of the pilgrimage to emphasize the importance of pilgrims’ religious, health, environmental and social awareness and adherence to the instructions of the Civil Defense.”
He said that the missions are required to educate pilgrims to only carry essential luggage and avoid congestion. The ministry would also distribute information on Haj regulations in various languages to the missions, he said.
The ministry was able to effectively tackle attempts by people to perform Haj without permits and crack down on illegal operators with the introduction of its online application system, he said.
Hatem Al-Sharif, a university professor, said: “The behavior of some pilgrims is un-Islamic and uncivilized, but this is a reflection of the reality of how some Muslims live.”
He said this must be countered with proper education campaigns by the government, with a particular emphasis on the elderly and those who do not have a formal education.
Abdullah Al-Aluwayt, a researcher, said that there should be a greater emphasis on introducing print, audio and video packages in many languages with information on how to perform the Haj rituals properly.
This would prevent behavior that could result in chaos at the holy sites, he said.
Some experts have even proposed that the government issue Haj visas only to those who have learned about how to perform the pilgrimage including the practices they must avoid.