What it is
Presidential Regulation No. 125/2016 on the Handling of Refugees from Abroad provides Indonesia's principal administrative framework for dealing with foreign refugees. It addresses rescue, discovery, shelter, coordination, security, and cooperation with international organizations.
Governance function
The regulation organizes refugee handling as an administrative and coordination matter rather than a full status-determination or integration system. It clarifies roles for national and local authorities while leaving refugee protection heavily dependent on cooperation with UNHCR and IOM.
Who is included
Foreign refugees and asylum seekers found or rescued in Indonesia may be included in reception, shelter, coordination, and referral arrangements.
Who is left out
People outside official handling channels, undocumented migrants not recognized as asylum seekers, long-staying refugees needing work or education access, and people seeking durable local integration remain weakly covered.
Where continuity breaks
Continuity breaks between reception and long-term legal status, between shelter and ordinary housing, between humanitarian assistance and public services, and between temporary presence and durable solutions.
Why it matters
The regulation is one of Southeast Asia's clearest examples of administrative refugee governance without accession to the 1951 Refugee Convention. The political economy archetype is humanitarian containment through administrative coordination: refugees are managed and assisted, but not absorbed into national membership or welfare systems.
Governance coding table
| Political economy archetype | Humanitarian containment |
|---|---|
| Responsibility | The regulation assigns roles to central government, local government, immigration, police, rescue authorities, and relevant ministries, with UNHCR and international organizations playing major operational roles. |
| Eligibility | Eligibility depends on being identified as a refugee or asylum seeker from abroad and falling within the administrative handling mechanisms established by the regulation. |
| Financing | Financing depends on national and local administrative resources, international organizations, humanitarian funding, and partner support. The regulation does not create a comprehensive public financing entitlement. |
| Data systems | Refugee identification, immigration records, UNHCR registration, shelter records, and coordination data shape implementation. |
| Delivery system | Delivery runs through reception, shelters, local authorities, immigration offices, rescue agencies, UNHCR, IOM, and humanitarian partners. |
| Portability | Portability is limited because refugees do not receive durable national status and may depend on location-specific shelter or assistance arrangements. |
| Accountability | Accountability is administrative and coordination-based, with limited direct rights-based enforcement for refugees under domestic law. |
| Time horizon | Administrative framework for ongoing refugee reception and management, often applied in protracted situations. |
Sources
Official sources
- UNHCR English translation of Presidential Regulation No. 125/2016
- Indonesia Cabinet Secretariat note on Regulation No. 125/2016
- Refworld entry on Regulation No. 125/2016