Hajj is an act of worship that is included in the 5 pillars of Islam. The five pillars of Islam contain five acts of worship that must be performed by Muslims. Hajj comes last after some of the more important acts of worship in the five pillars of Islam or can be performed by everyone. This is because Hajj is a very special act of worship, it is the perfecting act of worship. This does not mean that a person who does not perform Hajj until he dies is not perfect in his worship. Hajj is obligatory but not for everyone or obligatory but must meet certain conditions. Hajj is obligatory for those who are able to perform it. The definition of capable here is first seen from a financial point of view, for those who are able to pay the cost of Hajj, besides another definition of capable is that we must also be able or mentally ready to focus on worship with the aim of perfecting our worship and solely for Allah SWT, without any other bad intentions.
The specialty of Hajj lies in the place and time of its implementation. Hajj is performed at the same time and place for all Muslims in the world. This worship can only be performed in the month of Dzulhijjah and is held in Saudi Arabia, more precisely in Mecca and Medina. It makes all Muslims in the world gather at the same time and place. The Hajj pilgrimage, which cannot be carried out carelessly, makes it so special and highly dreamed of by almost all Muslims in the world, including our country Indonesia. As a country with a majority Muslim population, even being one of the countries with the largest Muslim population in the world, Indonesia will certainly send a large number of pilgrims every year. This makes it necessary for Indonesia to foster good relations with Saudi Arabia, or in fact, the existence of this pilgrimage makes Indonesia's diplomatic relations with Saudi Arabia even better.
Diplomatic Relations between Indonesia and Saudi Arabia, especially on Hajj
Indonesia's diplomatic relations with Saudi Arabia have been established for a long time. Even Saudi Arabia itself has a role in Indonesia's independence by becoming one of the countries that recognized Indonesia's independence. Starting from there, the diplomatic relations between Indonesia and Saudi Arabia began to develop, from establishing their embassies in each country and establishing increasingly close relations. Perhaps with the equally strong Islamic background in both countries, this relationship can be established so smoothly. Diplomatic relations between the two countries gave birth to various mutually beneficial cooperation for both countries. The cooperation carried out by the two countries is in various fields, such as economics, health, education and so on. However, an interesting form of cooperation to discuss is about Hajj.
Hajj cannot be done carelessly, as explained earlier that this worship is done at a special time and place or has been determined. The designated places are Mecca and Medina as cities or holy places and the Qibla of Muslims throughout the world, with the same place and time Muslims throughout the world will gather simultaneously, which is why the need for careful coordination from the government of Saudi Arabia itself or even with other countries that send their pilgrims to hajj. The form of coordination or cooperation between Saudi Arabia and other countries, especially Indonesia in this hajj has various forms, including:
1.Hajj Quota
Saudi Arabia will provide a quota policy for pilgrims according to the needs of each country that will send its citizens for the pilgrimage. This is done to limit the number of pilgrims so that worship can still run smoothly and safely. As one of the countries with the largest Muslim population in the world, Indonesia always expects to get a large and increasing quota of pilgrims every year. It is expected that the majority of Indonesia's population is Muslim and the high demand for pilgrims in Indonesia can increase our country's hajj quota every year, because as we know the queue of pilgrims has now reached decades, especially on the island of Java. So with an increase in the hajj quota every year, the queue for hajj in Indonesia becomes shorter, and so every Indonesian has the opportunity to be able to perform the hajj.
2.Health
Another area that certainly concerns us is cooperation in the field of health. This is because the health of the pilgrims is the most important thing in carrying out the pilgrimage. The health sector has certainly been thought of by the Indonesian government, especially the Ministry of Health in collaboration with the Ministry of Health of Saudi Arabia. The most important thing in this field is how the quality of health facilities and health workers available to handle the pilgrims. If necessary, Indonesia also sends our health workers to train to take part in helping medical personnel for pilgrims there. This health sector is also an important focus because as we know that many Indonesian pilgrims themselves are mostly elderly people with advanced age, they are a priority to be dispatched first. In order for the Hajj to run smoothly, health facilities and health workers also hold an important key in maintaining and handling the health of the pilgrims.
3.Security
In addition to health, Indonesia and Saudi Arabia have also agreed on an agreement in the field of security, especially regarding the supply of drugs and food for pilgrims. Indonesia and Saudi Arabia through the Food and Drug Administration of each country are trying to supervise and maintain the quality and safety of drugs and food products that will be distributed to pilgrims during their worship there. This includes important things in supporting the health of pilgrims during worship. In addition, the authority or government of Saudi Arabia also always maintains the security of the pilgrims by deploying security forces in areas for the pilgrimage. This is done to maintain the security and smooth running of the pilgrims' pilgrimage. Moreover, Indonesia also has good relations with Saudi Arabia, so the Indonesian government has trusted the Saudi Arabian government to maintain the security of the pilgrims while worshipping there.
Indonesia, as a country with the largest Muslim population, has a high demand for pilgrims every year. Hajj is like a culture for the people of Indonesia. Not culture as we usually know it, but culture as a habit. So, Hajj has become a habit or worship that every Muslim in Indonesia wants. This can be seen from the number of Indonesian pilgrims each year as well as the length and number of queues of pilgrims in Indonesia. The queue of pilgrims on the island of Java has reached decades. This proves that Muslims in Indonesia have high enthusiasm and desire to perform Hajj.
So, it can be concluded here that the Hajj is a form of cooperation that can strengthen diplomatic relations between Indonesia and Saudi Arabia. The form of cooperation in the Hajj is carried out in various ways, such as in the fields of health, security, Hajj quotas and so on. Moreover, Indonesia is closely related to existing Islamic cultures, making the relationship between Indonesia and Saudi Arabia even closer. It is hoped that this diplomatic relationship will continue to run smoothly and continue to improve the quality of relations that are getting better, even able to open cooperation in other fields.
Vemas Adhie Wicaksono_20230510178_L_AIK 2_Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta
