#HajjStempede - Saudi defiance

Predictably, Saudi Arabia has responded to an unprecedented chorus from Islamic countries calling for a more collaborative management of Hajj after the Mina tragedy with typical disregard and nonchalance. A high ranking prince, Turki al-Faisal, was the first to break the official silence on the growing condemnation of Saudi Arabia’s fatal mismanagement, saying that Riyadh considers management of Hajj a matter of sovereignty. The Saudi regime derives its legitimacy from being the self-proclaimed “Custodian of the two Holy Mosques” and the prince was adamant that the country believes this to be a matter of privilege and that after spending billions of dollars to improve the conditions of Hajj, it was not going to give up that privilege to anyone else. Later, Saudi King Salman himself weighed in on the issue and dismissed the mounting criticism as merely “political exploitation” of the incident by “irresponsible” elements. The King further professed that the Saudi Arabian regime was ‘the servant of God’ and it would employ all of its capabilities to “provide the guests of God with comfort, security and safety”. He reaffirmed the statements of his relative and defied any possibility that the organisation of the immensely profitable Hajj would be taken away from Saudi Arabia.

For all the nice sounding talk of serving the “guests of God”, the aftermath of the Mina tragedy proves that talk to be distinctly hollow. The callousness with which victims and grieving families have been dealt; the lack of transparency about the alleged investigations being done about the incident; the failure to update the body count or release a breakdown of the casualties according to nationalities to facilitate information sharing; the mass burial of dead bodies; the disregard for missing people — there is an endless list of Saudi transgressions and a crushing lack of humanity that bellies any claims of feeling privilege at serving the “guests of God”. The Saudi regime is bereft of humility or conscience. Under the guise of purist Islam, it is a greedy capitalist enterprise at its worst. which sees no qualms in profiting off a holy event attended by millions from around the world even if it leads to horrific deaths of thousands. The “sovereign” right it claims over managing the Hajj is but an accident of geography and a consequence of colonial powers dividing up Middle Eastern countries and parcelling them out to their favoured stooges in the 1920s and 30s. The so-called holy regime has ever since its inception been propped up by western powers and has no innate right to monopolise governance over one of the key sites of Islam. Alas, despite the resounding criticism, the Muslim countries hardly have enough of a clout to pressurise the Saudi regime to cede ground. It can only be hoped that Saudi Arabia, despite its public defiance, learns lessons and ensures there is no repeat of Mina.