By: Raditya Rahman )*
The Ministry of Health apparently did not have a problem with Habib Rizieq Shihab’s return to Indonesia from Saudi Arabia. However, the 14-day home quarantine rule applies to HRS as well as Indonesian citizens who have just returned from abroad.
Director General of P2P Ministry of Health, M Budi Hidayat, said the regulation in question is true. He said that when Habib Rizieq arrived in Indonesia, he would be treated the same as other Indonesian citizens and foreigners from abroad, such as the obligation to carry out a PCR test with a negative result.
Budi also said that if the results show negative results and without any symptoms, then Habib Rizieq is still obliged to comply with the applicable rules, which is obliged to carry out self-quarantine for 14 days. According to him, the regulation is in accordance with Law No. 6 of 2018 concerning health quarantine.
He also ensured that these rules apply to anyone who has just come from abroad, both Indonesian citizens and foreigners without exception.
As is well known, Habib Rizieq arrived in Indonesia on Tuesday, November 10 2020. Arriving at Soekarno-Hatta Cengkareng Airport, Habib Rizieq will be picked up by his family to go directly to his residence in Petamburan, Central Jakarta.
Meanwhile, Meuta Hafid as Chairman of Commission I of the DPR said that every citizen must follow all existing rules in Indonesia. No exception with Habib Rizieq.
However, there is something surprising about the Indonesian Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Agus Maftuh, where Ambassador Agus has stated that Habib Rizieq is currently on an overstay status in Saudi Arabia. He mentioned HRS as WINO, a joking acronym between Indonesian citizens which means Indonesian Citizen ora duwe Passport (Indonesian citizens do not have a passport).
He also advised Habib Rizieq not to feel ashamed of his status as an overstayer.
Ambassador Agus also explained that Rizieq Shihab had been included in the Al-Mukhalif Sijil, or a list of records of immigration law violators, where it was clear that he had indeed exceeded the lagging limit.
He also said that the Indonesian government had never completely prevented the FPI Chair from returning to Indonesia.
Previously, in a broadcast on the Youtube channel Front TV, Habib Rizieq admitted that he could not return to Indonesia because he was banned by the government of Saudi Arabia at the request of the Indonesian government.
However, until now there is no evidence that Habib Rizieq Shihab was banned by the Indonesian government. The Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs, Mahfud MD, spoke again about the Grand Imam of the Islamic Defenders Front, Habib Rizieq Shihab, who claimed to have been blocked by the Indonesian government.
We all know, based on Rizieq’s confessions in various media, he had been banned for one and a half years. Of course, this indicates that the ban is not from the Government of Indonesia, because the maximum limit of the ban in Indonesia is 6 months.
If the ban originates from Saudi Arabia, of course it must be resolved by the Arab government. This received a question mark from Mahfud who also emphasized that if the ban was proven by the Indonesian government, he was ready to help solve it.
Mahfud also requested that the FPI Grand Priest banned letter be sent to his office. The former Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court also questioned the veracity of the letter, because he admitted that during his tenure as the Coordinating Minister for Politics, Law and Security, he had never seen a letter of prohibition against Habib Rizieq.
Habib Rizieq’s return is also a question mark, why has HRS failed to return to Indonesia for years since deciding to go to Saudi Arabia in 2017. So why now?
It was recorded that HRS left the country on April 26, 2017. He visited Saudi Arabia after the police investigated a case of alleged nasty chat with a woman named Firza Husein. Although in the end the case was closed.
After all these years Habib Rizieq lived in Saudi Arabia, apparently he felt that the desert in Arabia was no longer friendly. Of course, his return to Indonesia is not without consequences, because during a pandemic health protocols must be adhered to.
)* The author is a citizen living in Tangerang