Indonesia Urges UNHCR to Accelerate Handling of Refugees

Jakarta, (Antara) - The Indonesian government has sought the support of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to jointly accelerate the handling of refugees and asylum seekers that are currently residing in Indonesia.

Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi voiced the matter while receiving a courtesy call from Assistant for the UNHCR High Commissioner for Protection Volker Turk, according to a press release of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Jakarta on Wednesday.

The meeting was held on the sidelines of the Regional Ministerial Conference on the 6th "Bali Process" on People Smuggling, Trafficking in Persons, and Transnational Crime or BRMC VI in Bali on Tuesday (March 22).

"As a transit country, Indonesia lauds the role and support of UNHCR in handling the refugees," noted the foreign minister in a joint press statement.

Foreign Affairs Minister Marsudi also stressed the importance of the Bali Process Conference to find a comprehensive solution to the issue of irregular migrants.

At the meeting, the two officials also discussed cooperation to find solutions to the root cause of the problem of handling irregular migrants in the region, both in the affected countries and the international community, based on the burden-sharing principle and shared responsibility.

Based on data from the UNHCR, until February 2016, a total of 13,829 migrants, comprising 7,560 asylum seekers and 6,269 refugees who came from 44 countries, were residing in Indonesia.

According to the record, there are 1,030 refugees and asylum seekers from Myanmar, including those that arrived in Aceh in May 2015.

Refugees and asylum seekers are provided shelters at 13 immigration detention centers (Rudenim) scattered across Indonesia.(*)