Legal Policy for Providing Protection to Refugees from Abroad in the National Legal System in Indonesia

Muhammad Akram; M. Iman Santoso; Andry Indrady; Hartanto

doi:10.56301/awl.v9i1.2353

Muhammad Akram Krisnadwipayana University, Jakarta, Indonesia
M. Iman Santoso Krisnadwipayana University, Jakarta, Indonesia
Andry Indrady Krisnadwipayana University, Jakarta, Indonesia
Hartanto Krisnadwipayana University, Jakarta, Indonesia

DOI: https://doi.org/10.56301/awl.v9i1.2353

Keywords: Legal Politics, Refugees, Immigration

Abstract

Indonesia has not ratified the 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol, while national immigration law also does not comprehensively regulate the status and legal protection of refugees and asylum seekers. This condition creates a normative vacuum that impacts the less than optimal legal certainty in the handling of refugees in Indonesia. Nevertheless, Indonesia continues to provide limited humanitarian protection through national legal instruments that reflect its own legal policy by balancing the interests of state sovereignty, national security, and respect for human rights. This study aims to analyze Indonesia's legal policy in providing protection to refugees from abroad, examine the forms of legal protection that have been provided, and formulate an ideal legal concept for the regulation of refugees in Indonesia in the future. The study uses a descriptive-analytical legal method with a normative juridical and empirical juridical approach ( socio-legal research ), through literature studies, field studies, and qualitative juridical analysis. The results of this study indicate that Indonesia's immigration legal policy remains based on the principle of selective policy that prioritizes national interests and state security, while still providing limited space for humanitarian protection. Presidential Regulation Number 125 of 2016 provides a meeting point between the principles of state sovereignty and humanitarian protection through an operational and collaborative refugee management mechanism. However, its implementation still faces weaknesses in the form of ineffective inter-institutional coordination, unclear division of authority, and suboptimal governance of refugee management. This study proposes a reconstruction of the legal policy of refugee protection through a comprehensive revision of Presidential Regulation Number 125 of 2016 by strengthening cross-sectoral coordination, clarifying institutional authority, and establishing adaptive, effective governance mechanisms that align with Indonesia's immigration legal policy, thereby increasing legal certainty, effective governance, and humanitarian protection for refugees.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Alexander, B., & Gil, L. (Eds.). (2011). Refugees in international relations. New York: Oxford University Press.
Amnesty International. (n.d.). Refugees, asylum-seekers and migrants. https://www.amnesty.org/en/what-we-do/refugees-asylum-seekers-and-migrants/
Balitbang HAM. (2011). Buku pedoman HAM bagi petugas Rumah Detensi Imigrasi. Jakarta: Balitbang Kementerian Hukum dan HAM.
Dewansyah, B. (2015). Perkembangan politik hukum dan kebutuhan hukum keimigrasian Indonesia: Menjawab sebagian, melupakan selebihnya. Hasanuddin Law Review, 1(2), 142–143.
Hardjaloka, L. (2015). Studi perbandingan ketentuan perlindungan pencari suaka dan pengungsi di Indonesia dan negara lainnya. Jurnal Legislasi Indonesia, 12(1).
Hartono, S. (2006). Penelitian hukum di Indonesia pada akhir abad ke-20. Bandung: Alumni.
Iskandar. (2009). Metodologi penelitian kualitatif. Jakarta: Gaung Persada Press.
Juwana, H. (2019). Kewajiban negara dalam proses ratifikasi perjanjian internasional: Memastikan keselarasan dengan konstitusi dan mentransformasikan ke hukum nasional. Undang: Jurnal Hukum, 2(1), 1–31.
Kadarudin. (2012). Penerapan prinsip non-refoulement oleh Indonesia sebagai negara transit pengungsi internasional. Makassar: Universitas Hasanuddin.
Muhammad, A. (2004). Hukum dan penelitian hukum. Bandung: Citra Aditya Bakti.
Narimawati, U. (2008). Metode penelitian kualitatif dan kuantitatif: Teori dan aplikasi. Bandung: Agung Media.
Pramono, S., & Ulfa, D. R. (2023). Norma internasional dan kebijakan penanganan pengungsi di Indonesia. Jurnal Spektrum, 20(1), 11–15.
Santoso, I. (2005). Perspektif imigrasi dalam pembangunan ekonomi dan ketahanan nasional. Jakarta: Universitas Indonesia Press.
Shahrbanou, T., & Anuradha, C. M. (2007). Human security: Concept and implication. London: Routledge.
Soekanto, S. (2008). Pengantar penelitian hukum. Jakarta: UI Press.
Soemitro, R. H. (1985). Metode penelitian hukum. Jakarta: Ghalia Indonesia.
Syahrin, M. A. (2015). Hak asasi bermigrasi. Jakarta: Direktorat Jenderal Imigrasi.
Syahrin, M. A. (2019). Diskursus skema pengawasan pengungsi setelah penerbitan Peraturan Presiden Nomor 125 Tahun 2016 tentang penanganan pengungsi dari luar negeri dalam perspektif keimigrasian. Jurnal Ilmiah Kajian Keimigrasian, 2(1), 71–77.
Sitanala, R. S. D. (2018). Perlindungan hukum terhadap pengungsi lintas batas negara di Indonesia. Jurnal SASI, 24(1), 31–40.
Thontowi, J. (2002). Hukum internasional di Indonesia. Yogyakarta: Madya Press.
UNHCR. (2016). Global trends: Forced displacement in 2015. Geneva: United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
Zainuddin, A. (2009). Metode penelitian hukum. Jakarta: Sinar Grafika.