أزمة الحجاج تحاصر الحكومة فى البرلمان .. وشركات السياحة الوهمية حققت مبالغ طائلة

The crisis of Egyptian pilgrims and their suffering during the current Hajj season sparked great dissatisfaction, followed by parliamentary movements and widespread denunciations on social media sites, regarding the death of a large number of Egyptian pilgrims, and what they suffered during the performance of the Hajj, as the deaths of Egyptian pilgrims who performed the 2024 Hajj rituals reached an increase. To 600 pilgrims, according to the French news agency, Agence France-Presse.

The death of a large number of pilgrims prompted the Ministry of Immigration to form a 24-hour operations room that continued its work during the Hajj days and the Eid al-Adha holiday, according to statements by the Minister of Immigration and Egyptian Affairs Abroad, Soha Gendi, who explained that the Ministry received many calls for help from the people, and what was done was… He noticed a significant increase in the number of deaths and missing persons, especially among the elderly.

There is also an increase in the number of people missing while performing Hajj rituals in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the loss of contact with their families in Egypt, pointing to the strenuous efforts made by the Ministry of Immigration, the Egyptian Embassy in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and the Egyptian Consulate General in Jeddah, in addition to coordination with the authorities in Saudi Arabia and hospitals in the Kingdom.

Ambassador Soha Al-Jundi called for the importance of obtaining Hajj permits and the approval of the competent authorities, so that they can receive the necessary care, in order to ensure their lives amid climate change and unprecedented rise in temperatures.

Parliamentarian Amal Abdel Hamid submitted a briefing request regarding the high number of deaths among Egyptian pilgrims, addressed to the Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Immigration, Health, and Tourism. They did not have the right to care, treatment, housing, and transportation via safe means.

The member of the House of Representatives indicated that the largest increase in the number of deaths belonged to our families who traveled on visit visas to Saudi Arabia, and who fell victim to a scam by tourism companies in Egypt, which deluded them of the possibility of Hajj at the lowest costs, so they became irregular pilgrims and not affiliated with the official Hajj delegation. Therefore, they do not have the right to care, treatment, housing, and transportation through safe means.”

A serious stand against the companies involved

The Member of Parliament called for a serious stand with the owners of these tourism companies and brokers to take legal measures against them, who deluded their victims of the possibility of Hajj via visit visas.

Lack of oversight and regulation

Representative Amal Abdel Hamid placed responsibility for the suffering of Egyptian citizens who hold visit visas on the relevant authorities in Egypt, starting with EgyptAir, which issued a decision allowing holders of visit visas to enter Saudi Arabia through all of the Kingdom’s airports, in violation of the regulations in force in the Kingdom, in addition to the absence of oversight on the part of The Ministry of Tourism on tourism entities and companies that sought to achieve profits at the expense of the suffering of Egyptians, and which deceived them into allowing holders of visit visas to perform Hajj rituals.

She stressed that the current Hajj season needed more organized and coordinated measures on the part of the concerned authorities in Egypt to avoid repeating what we had fallen into before during previous seasons, especially since there are no official statistics on unofficial pilgrims who do not enjoy any rights sufficient for their security and safety, as there are no They are provided with housing, transportation, supervisors to follow them, or medical care if someone becomes unwell.

Reconsidering the high costs of Hajj

She stressed the need to reconsider the high costs of Hajj, which doubled this year compared to previous years, and which was a major reason for the tendency of many citizens to resort to other means of performing the Hajj.

Amal Abdel Hamid also called on the relevant authorities in Egypt, led by the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Immigration, to intensify efforts with the authorities in Saudi Arabia in the search for missing persons performing the Hajj rituals, and to quickly complete the procedures for transporting the bodies of citizens who died to the homeland.

Fictitious entities for Hajj

Parliamentarian Olfat Al-Mazalawi, a member of the House of Representatives, sent a briefing request to Counselor Hanafi Jabali, Speaker of Parliament, to refer it to both the Prime Minister and the Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, to tighten control over the fictitious Hajj entities that caused the death of large numbers of pilgrims this year.

Risk of death and threat of imprisonment

The member of the House of Representatives added that hundreds of pilgrims faced the risk of death and the threat of imprisonment, some of whom were installed by fictitious entities who were given fake identities and bracelets to perform Hajj, and the largest percentage of them were from rural areas. At the last moment, by the day of Arafat, the Saudi authorities allowed them to enter Arafat’s shrine.

After the entry matter was settled, the danger of unorganized Hajj on a visit visa appeared. In this case, the pilgrim is responsible for himself and not within a group. This is another major danger that pilgrims faced while climbing the mountains.

Track responsible companies

Olfat Al-Mazalawi called on the state to track down these companies, stop their activities, hold them accountable, and issue instructions to citizens to protect them from danger they may face in the coming years.

She continued, in a complaint from the family of one of the pilgrims who were subjected to cases of fraud by fictitious entities, who confirmed that the matter was never easy while climbing high, frightening mountains at night. In the event that one person called for help, the other was unable to help him, and they remained in the middle of the mountains, unable to return or complete the matter.

While Representative Ayman Mohsab, a member of the House of Representatives, confirmed that this crisis came to confirm previous fears and warnings about the danger of traveling without obtaining a Hajj visa.

Mohsab stressed the importance of obtaining Hajj permits and the approval of the competent authorities, in order to obtain the necessary care, out of concern for their lives, especially in light of some fake tourism companies exploiting the desire of simple people to perform Hajj rituals by sending them on a visit visa, illegally, and in violation of the rules approved by the Kingdom. Saudi Arabia for Hajj.

He explained that field visits were made to hospitals and medical centers where Egyptian citizens are present to check on their conditions and ensure that they receive the necessary medical care, in addition to taking procedures to transport the bodies to those who wish.

An integrated strategy for digital transformation

The member of the House of Representatives added that the Egyptian state worked during the last period to implement an integrated strategy for digital transformation and use technology to achieve the principle of sustainability by keeping pace with global technological development. Among the most important provisions of that strategy is the necessity of taking advantage of modern technology in developing the file of religious tourism and Hajj and Umrah trips.

Therefore, the Egyptian Portal for Umrah and the Egyptian Portal for Hajj were created, to facilitate the task for citizens and tourism companies as well, while protecting the right of the pilgrim to a safe trip and a distinguished tourist service befitting the Egyptian citizen, where Hajj visas are organized, by obtaining a barcode from the Hajj and Umrah portal.

He continued: Some intruders and brokers have appeared who deceive simple citizens with visit visas as being suitable for Hajj, which was reflected in the increase in the number of irregular Egyptian pilgrims, which explains the high rates of missing persons among Egyptian pilgrims this year, calling for the prosecution of Hajj brokers who manipulated the dreams of simple people by monitoring Their advertisements on social media sites, and educating citizens about adhering to the law on the Umrah and Hajj electronic portals and at the same time with the Ministry of Tourism’s controls for organizing Hajj trips, which are consistent with Saudi laws and decisions in this regard.

Another briefing request was submitted by Representative Mohamed El-Gabalawy, a member of the House of Representatives, requesting a briefing to the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Tourism, to hold Egyptian companies responsible for the travel of Egyptian pilgrims violating the performance of Hajj rituals accountable, which exposed them to accountability by the Saudi authorities.

They deceived the pilgrims

He stated in his request that the tourism companies misled and deceived the Egyptians, which put the pilgrims in the position of accusation within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in a way that does not befit the dignity of the Egyptian citizen. In return, these companies collected huge sums of money despite their deception of the Egyptian pilgrims and put them in the predicament of the violators, which increased the inspection and censorship campaigns.

Representative Mohamed Al-Gabalawy pointed out that the Egyptian companies responsible for the pilgrims were not the only ones involved in this act, but there are Saudi companies as well, calling for these fake companies to be held accountable.

Representative Mahmoud Qassem, a member of the House of Representatives, also submitted a fourth briefing request, directing it to Dr. Mostafa Madbouly, Prime Minister, and Ahmed Issa, Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, regarding some tourism companies contracting with hundreds of thousands of citizens who wish to perform Hajj rituals, and agreed with them to ascend Mount Arafat. And their visit to Medina, but after she obtained huge sums of money from them, which approached 200 thousand pounds from some of them, she abandoned them.

Qasim explained in his request that these citizens and other contractors with companies are experiencing very difficult conditions and do not have any financial resources to spend.

Representative Mahmoud Qassem asked Dr. Mostafa Madbouly, Prime Minister, and Ahmed Issa, Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, to quickly intervene to find urgent solutions so that the suffering of thousands of Egyptians inside Mecca in general and the northern and southern Aziziyah regions in Mecca and other regions in particular is not repeated due to the fraud of a number of tourism companies. By contracting with Egyptians to perform Hajj rituals through special visas, they are left behind and their mobile phones are turned off.

He also called for the perpetrators of these blatant violations to be referred to urgent trials, with the return of all the amounts they obtained from these citizens who lived for days in extreme difficulty and were imprisoned in the housing in which the company placed them in many areas of Makkah Al-Mukarramah.

Representative Mahmoud Qassem called for setting strict and decisive standards for the issue of private visas that tourism companies manipulate and provide the illusion to citizens of organizing Hajj trips in violation of Egyptian laws, with the need to immediately close all tourism companies and bring their perpetrators to urgent criminal trials, stressing the need for the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities to play its role in real oversight. Against such companies that commit such blatant violations.

Representative Mahmoud Qassem described what these companies are doing as human trafficking, as thousands of people wishing to perform the Hajj rituals are subjected to continuous raids inside hotels and residential units in order to deport them to Jeddah. This happens many times, and during their return from Jeddah to Mecca, they return by illegal means on a journey of torment inside. Mountainous areas far from police inspection centers, in exchange for amounts amounting to more than 30 thousand pounds, demanding the immediate closure of such companies.

Representative Mahmoud Qassem called for studying the possibility of offering appropriate Hajj packages that include personal visits. The Ministry of Tourism can coordinate with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, taking into account its internal laws and regulations, so that comprehensive and appropriate Hajj packages are offered to citizens and low-income people, so that subscriptions to these packages are made through official channels.

He said: These packages can include better organization and allocate specific places for subscribers, which ensures that the Hajj is performed in a regular and organized manner, and this option can reduce police raids and reduce the intimidation of citizens who try to perform the Hajj in illegal ways.

Representative Mahmoud Qassem called on the government to study this situation seriously, and not to insult citizens who love to perform Hajj, stressing that it is important to find balanced solutions that respect the wishes of pilgrims and at the same time ensure compliance with laws and regulations.

Deterrent penalties set by law

Law No. 84 of 2022, issuing the law regulating Hajj and establishing the unified Egyptian portal for Hajj, regulated all matters related to Hajj, to protect citizens from tampering when performing the Hajj obligation.

According to Article 2 of the law, the competent authority, namely the Prime Minister, distributes visas granted by the Saudi authorities to the agencies organizing the Hajj, and the pilgrim’s data is listed on the portal before his travel in accordance with what is specified in the executive regulations.

It stipulates the establishment of an electronic portal called the “Unified Egyptian Hajj Portal,” which the competent authority, which is the authority concerned with Hajj affairs in Saudi Arabia, will manage, supervise, and develop. The executive regulations specify the procedures for organizing work and operating the portal, with the aim of preserving Egyptian citizens and preventing them from being scammed or manipulated by fake advertisements. When they go to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia during the Hajj seasons.

Article 21 of the law punishes anyone who carries out trips to perform Hajj rituals in violation of the provisions of this law or the controls issued in accordance with the provisions of Article (3) of this law, with a fine of not less than one million pounds and not exceeding three million pounds, and the fine is doubled to its minimum and maximum limits in the case of return.

Article 22 also punishes anyone who violates the provisions of Article (18) of this law, and the fine is doubled to its minimum and maximum limits in the event of return, with a fine of not less than one million pounds and not exceeding five million pounds.

Article (18) stipulates that transport companies are committed to electronic connectivity with the portal, and are also committed to matching the data of pilgrims and seasonal workers with the data registered with them before they leave the ports of the Republic.

While Article 23 stipulates that, without prejudice to the criminal liability of natural persons, the person responsible for the actual management of the legal person shall be punished with the same penalties prescribed for acts committed in violation of the provisions of this law if it is proven that he was aware of them, and his breach of the duties imposed on him by that administration has contributed to the occurrence of the crime. The legal person is jointly responsible with the convict for fulfilling the financial penalties imposed.

According to Article 24, the Minister responsible for tourism affairs may issue a reasoned administrative decision to completely or partially suspend the activity of the tourism company for a period not exceeding one year if it is proven to have violated the provisions of this law or the controls issued in accordance with the provisions of Article (3) of this law. In the event of a repeated violation, the company’s license will be cancelled. Tourist.