Beijing bans personal pilgrimages to Mecca for Chinese Muslims
- Religious affairs administration releases new rules defining patriotic requirements for pilgrims
- Regulations part of a continued effort to exert control over religious matters, analyst says
China has introduced new rules banning non-official pilgrimages to Mecca, a move observers said was another attempt by the Communist Party to control religious affairs.
In rules issued on Monday for the Muslim pilgrimage, known as the haj, the State Administration for Religious Affairs said all such trips to Saudi Arabia must be arranged by the Islamic Association of China, an organisation controlled by the party’s international outreach arm, the United Front Work Department.
Independent personal pilgrimages are not allowed.
“The association should educate haj attendees on patriotic and safe behaviour, strengthen the management of attendees, and prevent the infiltration of religious extremist thinking and behaviour that endangers national security,” the administration said in the rules.
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