Indonesia has yet to establish specific legislation governing the protection of Indonesian students studying abroad. At present, the protection afforded to Indonesian students overseas still refers generally to provisions concerning the protection of Indonesian citizens abroad, both during peacetime and armed conflict. Consequently, certain rights of Indonesian students abroad remain inadequately protected.
According to Mokhammad Ardafillah, a student at the Faculty of Law UGM, other state representatives abroad have already been granted specific legal protection. “Diplomatic representatives, consular representatives, peacekeeping missions, and Indonesian migrant workers all receive not only general protection as Indonesian citizens abroad, but also specific legal protection. Students, however, do not yet have such protection,” Arda stated.
This condition encouraged Mokhammad Ardafillah, together with Elisabeth Regitta W., Yanottama Patria, and Siti Aan Kumaenah, to examine the legal protection of Indonesian students abroad. This year, their research proposal entitled “Legal Protection for Indonesian Students Abroad Experiencing International Armed Conflict” successfully secured funding from the Directorate General of Higher Education (Dikti) under the Student Creativity Program (PKM) research scheme. The four students of the Faculty of Law Universitas Gadjah Mada (FH UGM) conducted their research under the supervision of Dr. Harry Supriyono, S.H., M.Si.
The research adopted a case study focusing on Indonesian students at Al Ahgaff University in Yemen, including both students who had been repatriated to Indonesia and those who remained in Yemen. Arda and his colleagues collaborated with the Indonesian Students Association (PPI) of Hadramaut, Yemen, in obtaining respondents from among Indonesian students at Al Ahgaff University. In addition, the final-year students interviewed several key informants, including the Head of the Indonesian Citizens Evacuation Team in Yemen at the Directorate for the Protection of Indonesian Citizens and Indonesian Legal Entities of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia, staff members of the Embassy of Yemen in Jakarta, the Education and Cultural Attaché of the Indonesian Embassy in Cairo for the 2008–2013 period, as well as a lecturer in International Law at Universitas Gadjah Mada.
When interviewed at FH UGM on Saturday (18/6), Arda explained that the primary challenge encountered during the research process involved bureaucratic obstacles. “The lengthy process of obtaining consent from the Embassy of Yemen, the delayed responses from Al Ahgaff University students, and the slow administrative procedures for official correspondence were among the difficulties we faced,” Arda elaborated.
The research is expected to produce a handbook that may serve as practical guidance for Indonesian students pursuing studies abroad. The handbook will contain information regarding the rights of Indonesian citizens overseas, reporting procedures in the event of problems abroad, and relevant emergency contact information. The handbook will subsequently be submitted to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and scholarship providers for distribution to Indonesian students continuing their studies overseas. (Fardi)
