Seminar on the Protection of Refugee Rights in Indonesia
Friday, June 08th, 2018 10:05 am. The Research and Publication Unit of the Faculty of Law, Universitas Indonesia in collaboration with Sandya Institute held a Seminar on the Protection of Refugee Rights in Indonesia on Wednesday, June 6, 2018. The seminar was attended by Academicians, Civil Society Organizations, Corporations and Refugee communities.
The seminar began with a panel discussion consisting of Mr. Heru Susetyo, SH, M.Si., LL.M., Ph.D, Manager of Research and Publication Unit of Faculty of Law, Universitas Indonesia, Ms. Dina Hapsari from UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and Ms. Yunita, SH, LL.M, from SUAKA – Indonesian Civil Society Network for the Protection of Refugee Rights.
Dina Hapsari presented about the definition of refugees, the roles of the United Nations Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), and comprehensive responses and solutions on refugee issues. While Heru Susetyo spoke about a comprehensive analysis of the legal rights of refugees and the Indonesian legal framework governing the issue of refugees, as well as the role of academician in assisting refugees through research in Indonesia.
The seminar concludes with the #darisayacampaign plan presented by Diovio Alfath, Executive Director of Sandya Institute, this campaign aims to mainstream refugee issues in Indonesia and to bring greater sympathy for refugees in Indonesia.
The refugee crisis is an important topic that should be addressed by all stakeholders, as at the end of December 2017, 13,840 refugees are registered with UNHCR Indonesia and most of them are from Afghanistan (55%), Somalia (11%) and Iraq (6%). They live with limited rights, they need the help of all stakeholders so that they can live well, but the problem is the lack of public awareness of this issue, the authorities are also considered to have not put optimal effort in overcoming this problem, therefore Sandya Institute organized this seminar so that problems will be solved together and all stakeholders will be able to deepen their understanding of refugee rights in Indonesia.
