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🇮🇩 Indonesia /Crime & Justice

Indonesia Blocks Three Umrah Travel Operators, Demands Compliance

From Republika · () Indonesian

Translated from Indonesian and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Named sources Under investigation
  • Indonesia’s Ministry of Hajj and Umrah blocked three licensed Umrah travel operators after reviewing public complaints and supervisory recommendations.
  • Officials said blocking follows verification and is not automatic, while about five previously blocked operators regained access after meeting requirements.
  • Complaints can trigger inspections even when a case has not received broad media attention.

Indonesia’s Ministry of Hajj and Umrah has blocked three Umrah travel operators after receiving complaints and recommendations from its supervisory directorate under Ministerial Regulation No. 2 of 2026.

Ronald Paul Sinyal, deputy head of the ministry’s Umrah Licensing and Accreditation Subdirectorate, said officials do not block operators immediately after receiving a complaint. The ministry first sends each report to the supervisory directorate under its directorate general for control of Hajj and Umrah services. Officials then review the issue before acting on a recommendation.

We do not immediately block them. We first check what the problem is. Once there is a recommendation from the Supervisory Directorate, we carry out the blocking according to the rules.

· Ronald Paul SinyalHe explained the ministry’s process for blocking Umrah travel operators.

The ministry has so far restored access for about five operators that had previously been blocked. They were reopened after inspections and after meeting the required conditions.

If the reports and the Supervisory Directorate’s recommendations show that something requires immediate follow-up, we will prioritize it, especially if it has become a public concern.

· Ronald Paul SinyalHe described how public attention affects the priority given to a case.

Sinyal said the number of complaints linked to an operator is one of the main considerations in a blocking case. Reports can come from the public or from pilgrims. He cited PT Hanania as an example of a case that had already drawn public attention, saying matters identified in supervisory recommendations would be prioritized, particularly when they had become widely known.

However, media attention is not required for action. Sinyal referred to an operator identified as PT “T,” which allegedly faced problems at several branches. Although the case had not received widespread coverage, the volume of complaints led to follow-up through the supervision mechanism. Another recently blocked operator, identified as PT “Y,” was also subject to a recommendation from the ministry’s directorate general before officials reviewed the public reports and conducted an internal assessment.

Even if it has not received much media attention, we still follow it up through the supervision mechanism.

· Ronald Paul SinyalHe said widespread coverage is not necessary for an investigation.
About this summary

Originally published by Republika in Indonesian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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