Mohamed Ousman
One of the statements to emerge from the early generation of Muslims was “the ignorant one who acts out of ignorance does more harm than the wicked one who acts out of wickedness.”
Muslims of the leftist ilk, (if there can be such a category), make a sensational claim that the South African Muslim Community demands an end to the oppressive Hajj regime.
These clueless leftists continue their sensationalism by stating that for over two decades, the South African Muslim community has been subjected to an oppressive and unrepresentative system governing the sacred pilgrimage of Hajj.
This would have been correct had the statement pertained to the Bani Sa‘ud regime. Instead, they have missed the real culprits by sparing the regime and directing their criticism of the entire affair on puny bureaucrats!
These clueless leftists state that this Fifth Pillar of Islam has been placed under the control of a single NGO, the South African Hajj and Umrah Council (SAHUC), which operates without a formal government mandate.
The truth is different and a factual inaccuracy must be corrected. Corrupt as SAHUC may be and useless as they are, they are small fries/puny bureaucrats. It is the corruption of Hajj itself and its corruptors i.e. Bani Sa‘ud that must be tackled.
SAHUC was birthed out of a mutual agreement between the South African Ministry of Foreign Affairs (now Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO)) and the Ministry of Hajj of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in 1995.
Under SAHUC’s administration, Hajj has become prohibitively expensive for most people. It must, however, be noted that SAHUC simply implements the policies dictated by the Saudi regime’s ministry of Hajj.
SAHUC’s restrictive management systems, the implementation of the new digital application processes and the resultant creation of a monopolistic cartel have further undermined the rights of pilgrims/(hujjaaj and mu‘tamirin). These are, however, dictated directly by the Saudi ministry of Hajj.
A further twist to this saga comes from the “accredited” travel operators. With SAHUC having taken over the role of these “accredited” travel operators and morphed into a monopolistic cartel, the “accredited” travel operators are visibly disturbed. Not surprising since they will no longer be able to rip off the pilgrims as they have been doing for many decades by charging exorbitant prices for Hajj and Umrah.
The Bani Saud regime has realized that there is money to be made and there is no need for any “foreign middlemen.” The ripping off which was done by “accredited” travel operators will now be done directly by the Saudi regime’s sidekicks who benefit financially for doing its bidding.
Prospective pilgrims are now required to apply for a visa via the new digital application platform. Thereafter, SAHUC will facilitate the ripping off process directly on behalf of hotel owners, i.e. sidekicks of the Saudi regime.
This is the reason for the protests against SAHUC. Yet, there are no protests against the Bani Saud regime!
So what has been their proposed solution?
First, these clueless leftist Muslims have proposed, since 2022, that Hajj must be managed by the kuffaar! They shamefully advocate for it to be directly managed by the DIRCO. In their shortsightedness, they attempted to bait the Muslims to support them by stating that the DIRCO minister is a Muslimah. Truth be told, that minister is a zionist Muslimah.
By definition, any person (Muslim, Christian, Jew, etc.) who supports the existence of the zionist monstrosity called the State of Israel is a zionist. The said minister is a vocal advocate of giving Israel 78% of Palestine, i.e. the two-state solution.
That that minister would not be around forever has never crossed their minds. That bait has since been exposed with the passage of time as the minister has been replaced by a non-Muslim.
Second, it should never be forgotten that South Africa is a secular liberal constitutional democracy under which everyone is “equal”. These clueless leftist Muslims have still not answered the question posed to them at the time: “so what will happen if/when, on the basis of religious identification, the South African government judges the application for Hajj and Umrah to be unconstitutional? And that all South Africans should be entitled to apply?”
This equal application entitlement may well include applicants who are South African zionist Jews. It is no secret that Yahud are already being welcomed to Saudi Arabia, with signs carrying Shalom in Madinah since May 2019!
Further, Yahud have been saying, since the 1960s at least, that they want to return to their ancestral lands that they were expelled from. This includes their expulsion from Madinah. But they don’t mention that they were expelled for high crimes of treason and treachery after Allah’s Prophet gave them complete autonomy!
And while the Bani Saud are erasing all traces of Muslim/Islamic presence, they are preserving signs of Yahudi presence as architectural proof to support the coming Yahudi claim to “return” to their ancestral lands!
Another example is the purchase of a well from a Yahudi. It should be recalled that when Madinah was an Islamic State under the leadership of Allah’s Prophet, Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him and forgive his mistakes) with good intention purchased a 50% stake in this well from a Yahudi.
The agreement was that the Yahudi would profit from water sales on one day and Uthman the next day. The Yahudi charged an exorbitant price for water. Uthman offered the water for free to all citizens (Muslims, Jews, etc.) of the Islamic State in Madinah and beyond.
As a result, they would fill their utensils on the day designated for Uthman and no-one would come on the day designated for the Yahudi. Frustrated by this development, the Yahudi forfeited his 50% stake in the well. Thereafter, Uthman continued to allow free water to all the citizens of Madinah and beyond.
This should be a lesson for those who are seeking to destroy the Yahudi grip over local to global economies rather than profiteer by providing alternative products.
Typical of confused Marxists/Leftists—who seek an improvement in the material conditions and hence want an affordable commercial experience—these Leftist Muslims have shifted focus away from the Bani Saud.
But what has been the role of the status quo clergy-class on these issues? One would expect them to know better.
This writer lived through these details over 20 years ago. At a public gathering attended by consumer advocacy groups, Hajj advocacy groups and the clergy-class, the question was posed: It’s nice to see so many people gathered for the commercial interest of the pilgrims. But who is prepared to stand up for the pilgrims who want to perform Hajj on Allah’s terms and oppose the Saudi policy of bid‘at/ innovation regarding Hajj/Umrah visas and quotas, aggravated as they are by discrimination? Or for pilgrims who want to fulfil their obligations outlined in Surat Al Tawbah, verse 1-2 and declare the Bara’at min Al Mushrikin (Disavowal of dependency on Allah’s rival in marches and protests)?
One could have heard a pin drop in a packed hall when these real issues were raised. Everyone was silent!
Due to this silence one can now add the question: who will protect the pilgrim who wants to wear the kafiyyah or any resistance symbol in support of the struggle in Palestine?
And while these efforts to manage the extent to which the Hajj/Umrah is being commercialized by the Left and Right continue, pilgrims continue to face arrest just for wearing the kaffiyah in Makkah?!
Given this reality, South African Muslims obsess about getting the best possible deal to consume sumptuous meals, be accommodated in luxurious hotels and make merry. Has anyone ever heard of a South African Muslim being arrested for supporting any oppressed peoples’ course during the Hajj/Umrah? On the contrary, the clergy-class prepares them well for months prior to departing, telling them “you are going for ibadah/ritual worship. Do not get involved in politics!”
It is for this reason that upon being told that someone is going to/returned from Hajj, a leader from the Islamic Movement, Imam Ahmad Cassim always asked: are they going/did they go for Hajj or are they going/did they go to Makkah and Madinah?
The first cinema is now being constructed in Makkah. As things remain, one can expect the Leftist Muslims to ask DIRCO to include reasonably priced movie tickets in Hajj packages while the clergy-class will ask for halal movies and halal programs to be screened along with halal refreshments!
All this continues while the requirements of the Qur’anic and Prophetic Hajj will, to varying degrees, elude the pilgrims, the Leftist Muslims, the “accredited” travel operators, SAHUC and the ministry of Hajj of the Saudi regime.
Having considered their proposed (non)solution, it behooves us to ask: and what is Allah’s solution?
“Do you, perchance, regard the [mere] giving of water to the pilgrims and the [physical] erection of the Inviolable House of Reverence as being equal to [the works of] one who is committed to Allah and the last day and strives hard in Allah’s cause? These [things] are not equal in the sight of Allah. And Allah does not grace with His guidance people who [deliberately] do wrong” (The Ascendant Qur’an, Surat Al Tawbah verse 19).
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