October 2, 2025 | 04:51 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Coordinating Ministry for Legal, Political, and Security Affairs has formed a special desk to handle Persons of Philippine Descent (PPDs) in Indonesia and Persons of Indonesian Descent (PIDs) in the Philippines.
Agato Simamora, the Assistant Deputy for Immigration Services Strategy at the Coordinating Ministry, stated that the formation of this desk could produce concrete recommendations and serve as a technical guide in resolving the citizenship status issues faced by individuals of Indonesian-Filipino descent.
Agato mentioned that thousands of Indonesian descendants in the Philippines and Filipino descendants in Indonesia are still facing citizenship status uncertainty. Without official documents, they are vulnerable to exploitation, struggle to access education, and lack proper legal protection.
This issue has persisted since the Indonesia-Philippines Joint Commission on Bilateral Cooperation was signed in 2014. Both countries are obligated to resolve the issue, but a permanent solution is yet to be reached.
According to the agreement, both countries are obligated to resolve the issue of legality, yet a resolution has not yet been reached.
"Their existence has been passed down from generation to generation without any legal recognition, which makes their position very vulnerable," he said.
Agato also reported on the progress of previous meetings, including the verification of 374 descendants in North Sulawesi who have been declared Filipino citizens by the Philippine Government. There are plans for follow-up bilateral meetings with the Philippine Government to grant official passports.
To expedite the resolution, the Coordinating Ministry recently held a coordination meeting in Jakarta, attended by officials from relevant ministries and institutions, local government representatives, and partners from North Sulawesi, as well as the Philippine Embassy.
The coordination meeting led to the establishment of a special desk, divided into several areas such as legal and administrative, immigration technicalities, population, and bilateral diplomacy.
Nyoman Gede Surya Mataram, the Deputy of Immigration and Correctional Affairs at the Coordinating Ministry, emphasized that resolving the issues faced by PPDs and PIDs is a joint commitment of both countries.
"This is not just a matter of population administration but concerns basic human rights. The state must be present to ensure that no individual lives without identity and legal protection," said Surya.
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