Over the past few years of my
experience working in refugee related issue, social exclusion seems to be one
of the root causes of discrimination against
refugees in Indonesia. With almost 14.000 refugees and asylum seekers, Indonesia should take a lead in Southeast Asia to include refugee in creating collaborations and programs to improve national welfare.
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| World Refugee Day 2020 Art by Franzi Draws Source |
Social Exclusion
Social exclusion is a process in which an individual/a group is unable to gain equal access to various rights, opportunities and resources that are accessible by other people/group. This process usually marginalizes those who are already considered as a marginalized group, one of which are refugees and their communities in Indonesia. Imagine fleeing your country due to persecution and not having your rights fulfilled, to just arrive in another place with minimum protection of rights. Even though I might not be able to understand completely how it feels to be in their position, it is truly devastating to live in limbo without having the access to rights such as to formal education and work. Hence, it led refugee communities to be dependent to charitable help. These conditions deteriorate the well-being of most refugees while staying in Indonesia which has been proven by the large amount of refugees who are experiencing PTSD, anxiety disorder, stress, and other mental health issues.
Social exclusion is a process in which an individual/a group is unable to gain equal access to various rights, opportunities and resources that are accessible by other people/group. This process usually marginalizes those who are already considered as a marginalized group, one of which are refugees and their communities in Indonesia. Imagine fleeing your country due to persecution and not having your rights fulfilled, to just arrive in another place with minimum protection of rights. Even though I might not be able to understand completely how it feels to be in their position, it is truly devastating to live in limbo without having the access to rights such as to formal education and work. Hence, it led refugee communities to be dependent to charitable help. These conditions deteriorate the well-being of most refugees while staying in Indonesia which has been proven by the large amount of refugees who are experiencing PTSD, anxiety disorder, stress, and other mental health issues.
In the Covid-19 situation,
refugees are hardly included in national or local program provided by
Indonesian government. For instance, access to information related to Covid-19 that
can be understood by refugees is barely provided by the government. NGOs and
International Organizations are actively filling the gap to translate information
from the source language (Indonesian) to the languages used by refugees. The
access to health and sanitary products are also provided mostly by civil
society who are concerned about refugee communities. This condition shows the lack of attention given by the state to refugees as a vulnerable group. Bear in mind that refugees who are living in
Indonesia are part of Indonesian society, irrelevant with Indonesia not being
signatory to The 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol.
World Refugee Day
On the 4th of December 2000, the United Nations General Assembly in Resolution 55/76 declared 20th of June as World Refugee Day (WRD). With limited amount of publication on refugee back then, I discovered Indonesia’s first commemoration of WRD was back in 2002. It was an event facilitated by UNHCR Indonesia.[1] The organization I am in, SUAKA, commemorates our first WRD back in 2014, with “Refugee Rights are Human Rights” as the theme.[2] Now, we are 20 years forward from the declaration of WRD by United Nations. It is about time that refugees are placed in the center of conversation and considered as a stakeholder in the process of decision making towards better program and regulation.
On the 4th of December 2000, the United Nations General Assembly in Resolution 55/76 declared 20th of June as World Refugee Day (WRD). With limited amount of publication on refugee back then, I discovered Indonesia’s first commemoration of WRD was back in 2002. It was an event facilitated by UNHCR Indonesia.[1] The organization I am in, SUAKA, commemorates our first WRD back in 2014, with “Refugee Rights are Human Rights” as the theme.[2] Now, we are 20 years forward from the declaration of WRD by United Nations. It is about time that refugees are placed in the center of conversation and considered as a stakeholder in the process of decision making towards better program and regulation.
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| World Refugee Day 2015 Source |
Fighting the Exclusion
Social cohesion is one of the
answers to resolve social exclusion. It is a condition of willingness
of members of society to accept and cooperate with each other. Social cohesion is
important as it fights exclusion and marginalization against refugee communities.
Refugees are a group of beautiful people with their unique characteristics and
capabilities. They know things that Indonesian people don’t. They offer skills
that Indonesian people might not have. They are already a part of our society
and we should support and embrace their existence, which enriches our society even
further. “Bhinneka Tunggal Ika” (Unity in Diversity) should apply to them too.
Social cohesion requires both
refugee and Indonesian communities to work together. It is not a one-sided
effort made by only refugee communities who want to feel belonged, but also for
Indonesian communities to welcome them wholeheartedly. This year, we use #RefugeeIncluded
to break the systemic exclusion, because we are stronger together.
Happy World Refugee Day 2020.
∞
[1]
UNHCR Indonesia, World Refugee Day 2002:
Indonesia, 2002. https://www.unhcr.org/events/wrd/3e7f3f1424/world-refugee-day-2002-indonesia.html?query=refugee%20women
[2]
LBH Jakarta, Peringatan “World Refugee
Day: Refugee Rights Are Human Rights”, 2014. https://www.bantuanhukum.or.id/web/peringatan-world-refugee-day-refugee-rights-human-rights/
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