PILGRIMS jostle outside the Islamic Centre in Conakry. A stressed-looking official barks at them to queue in single file. Rain pours down the sides of a dilapidated portico. Hawkers hover, flogging plastic sandals and kola nuts.
These men and women have travelled to the capital from all corners of Guinea to apply for a “pilgrimage package” that will take them to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, on the Haj in September. All Muslims are supposed to visit the holy city at least once in a lifetime. Guinea has been allotted 7,200 places this year by the Saudi authorities. Some pilgrims have been saving all their lives for this opportunity. Everyone is anxious that their papers are processed in time.
However, trying to organise a foreign trip for thousands of people—most of whom have never left the country—is no easy task. Complicating matters is pent-up demand. Pilgrims from Guinea were banned from taking part in the Haj for two years because of the Ebola virus, which killed more than 2,500 of their compatriots. Saudi Arabia only lifted the ban at the end of June, so officials have had little time to prepare.
“Some of those applying are...Continue reading
Source: Middle East and Africa http://ift.tt/2bu88bK
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