2200 Chinese muslims head for Mecca pilgrimage

A total of 2,223 Chinese Muslims from northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region will go on the annual pilgrimage to Mecca on a government-organized trip, according to regional religious authorities. They are scheduled to fly to Saudi Arabia between Sept. 15 and Sept. 20, returning to Ningxia from Oct. 25, said Jin Xiaolin, an official with the Regional Administration of Religious Affairs. The number of people traveling this year is about 400 fewer than in 2012, she said. The Mecca pilgrimage, also known as the Hajj, is a Muslim religious tradition that specifies that all able-bodied Muslims who can afford to travel to Saudi Arabia must visit Mecca at least once in their lifetime. Jin said that religious authorities in Ningxia will dispatch a 79-member team to offer services for Muslims, including translation, guidance for the pilgrimage and medical treatment. China has more than 20 million Muslims, about half of whom are from the Hui ethnic group. Chinese Muslims mainly live in the western provinces of Qinghai, Gansu and Yunnan, as well as Ningxia Hui and Xinjiang Uygur autonomous regions. More than 2.28 million Hui live in Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, accounting for more than one-tenth of the total population of the region.