AUSTRALIAN PILGRIMS COULD NOT TAKE THE FLIGHT FOR HAJJ

Sydney, 24 DHulqo’dah 1435/19 September 2014 (MINA) – One of the scholars (Islam= imam) of the Australian National Imams Council (ANIC) along with his group on Thursday (18/9) could not leave for Saudi Arabia in order to perform the Hajj  as customs detained their baggage at Sydney airport, the capital of the country, for unclear reason.

“As a result of the two and a half hours detention for an alleged “routine baggage search” the respected Imam missed his flight and was unable to travel along with his group of Australian pilgrims on their way to perform the Hajj,” ANIC said in a statement, Friday.

The Imam was eventually released without charge but was unable to secure another booking at the time, the statement added.

Meanwhile, the Grand Mufti of Australia, Dr Ibrahim Abu Mohammad and the Australian National Imams Council express  their anger over such “insulting” incident against the pilgrims, as the Hajj is the fifth pillar of Islamic ritual worship which more than 2000 Australians undertake each year.

“It is totally unacceptable for any Australian citizen let alone a senior member of ANIC to be subjected to this seemingly random yet profiled manner causing severe stress and unwanted inconvenience,” said Abu Mohammad.

ANIC stated its concern and aware of a number of similar cases where innocent travelers have been unnecessarily inconvenienced and penalized financially having to foot the bill for all additional costs.

“The manner in which the detention occurred was extremely unprofessional and exposed severe shortcomings with the process currently in place at Sydney’s airport,” Abu Mohammad said.

Customs must as a matter of urgency review its processes to ensure that law abiding citizens are not placed in a position of unnecessary inconvenience and financial hardship, it concluded.

The council consists of more than 250 Imams across Australia representing their respective communities.(T/R04/R03)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)