JEDDAH, Nov 15(Arab News): Pilgrim smugglers in Jeddah eagerly look forward to the Day of Arafat. Don’t think that it is because the smugglers pine to wash away all their sins with prayers on that special day.
The day, in fact, offers them the opportunity to earn thousands of riyals in a few hours by smuggling permit-less pilgrims — an industry that thrives despite the authorities' best efforts to stop domestic pilgrims (Saudis or expatriates) from performing Haj without papers.
The permits are issued for two main reasons — to help in crowd control and to help Muslims who have not performed Haj before.
These permits are issued to Haj pilgrims only once in five years, but many — especially those residing in the Kingdom — attempt to skirt this rule by sneaking into the holy sites. Poor people, too, look for cheaper ways to perform Haj; licensed domestic companies charge a minimum of SR4,000 for a Haj, apart from the fee for a permit. For many of the developing world's Muslims, paying over $1,000 to perform their religious duty is an enormous expense.
Many private and taxi drivers, including expatriates, wait for the Arafat Day, when the police and other checking officials are extremely busy and over-worked, to take unused routes or mud roads to smuggle pilgrims looking for cheaper Haj. The fees demanded by a smuggler would be between SR500 and SR1,000.
Posing as a pilgrim without permit, Arab News visited the car park in Jeddah from where private taxis leave for Makkah on Monday.
A Saudi driver said his strategy is to smuggle only one pilgrim at a time by taking his kids along with him and putting the pilgrim among them. He tells the officials at checkpoints that he is taking his kids to pray at the Grand Mosque with no intention of performing Haj and that the man in the rear seat is just a friend intending to perform Umrah.
According to some drivers, the best ploy is to get a permit to transport pilgrims or open a temporary commercial kiosk at the holy sites. When officials see the license for transporting pilgrims or commercial license for operating a kiosk, they are most likely to allow a vehicle to pass without further scrutiny.
Arab News asked a Yemeni laborer in the car park how he plans to go for Haj without a permit. Muhammad Ali Al-Faifi, the Yemeni laborer, said it was very simple. “I performed Haj every year over the past 10 years without a permit,” he said. “I go to Makkah without wearing the Ihram. I spend one night in Makkah and then go to the Taneem Mosque where I wear Ihram and proceed to Arafat for Haj.”
His cousin Abdo Sadem said he also resorted to the same strategy for a Haj for the first time this year because he could not afford a Haj in the legally permitted way.
“This is the only chance for me to perform Haj as I plan to leave the Kingdom after a few months,” he said.
A Saudi driver said smuggling passengers to Makkah is easier on Arafat Day than other days because the rigorous checking apparatus will be shifted to the entry points to the holy sites. So he takes the pilgrims in their ordinary clothes to Makkah. Each passenger pays SR1,000. They go on foot to Arafat and participate in the Haj.
Lt. Col. Badr Al-Malik of the Passport Department said immigration officers have been deployed at the borders of Makkah in sufficient numbers to curb attempts by illegal pilgrims to enter Makkah and the holy sites.
“Since the first day of the current month, the security wing of the Passport Department has been checking all vehicles entering the holy city,” he told Arab News.