Coordinating Minister For Human Rights Imipas: The Status Of The Citizenship Of The Bali Bombing Suspect Hambali Has Not Been Legally Confirmed

JAKARTA - Coordinating Minister for Law, Human Rights, Immigration, and Corrections, Yusril Ihza Mahendra, said that until now the citizenship status of the suspect in the Bali Bombing case, Hambali, has not been legally confirmed. Since 2003, Hambali has been detained by US authorities at the dictation Bay facility, Cuba.

Hambali has been accused by the United States of being involved in a series of international acts of terrorism in various countries. He is also accused of being an intellectual actor in the 2002 Bali bombing case. Now, Hambali is reportedly being tried by a United States military court after more than twenty years in prison in prison.

"What I say is that Indonesia in principle does not recognize citizenship. If there are Indonesian citizens who consciously become citizens of other countries, and hold passports of other countries, then their Indonesian citizenship status (WNI) automatically falls according to the provisions of the applicable laws," said Yusril, Saturday, June 14.

It is known that when he was arrested in Thailand, Hambali or who had the real name Encep Nurjaman, did not hold an Indonesian passport and did not show his identity as an Indonesian citizen, but a foreign passport from two different countries, namely Spain and Thailand. This condition makes it difficult for an accurate verification effort regarding his citizenship status.

"Hambali was arrested not showing Indonesian passports, but Spanish and Thai passports. Until now, we have not obtained valid data and official documents that prove his status as an Indonesian citizen," Yusril explained.

Coordinating Minister Yusril explained, Indonesia adheres to the principle of single citizenship as regulated in Law Number 12 of 2006 concerning Citizenship of the Republic of Indonesia. Article 23 of the law states that a person can lose Indonesian citizenship if, among other things, the person concerned obtains another nationality of his own will.

With this provision, if Hambali legally obtains other citizenship and never asks to return to become an Indonesian citizen, then legally he is no longer an Indonesian citizen. If this is the case, then the Indonesian Government based on the Immigration Law has the authority to ward off foreign nationals who are considered detrimental to the interests of the state to enter the territory of the Republic of Indonesia.

"According to the applicable law, if a person has become a foreign citizen and there is no official application to return to become an Indonesian citizen, then Indonesia cannot claim him as our citizen. In the Hambali case, the situation is not yet clear. Therefore, the position of the Indonesian government is still waiting for clarity on the status and official documents," said Coordinating Minister Yusril.

The Indonesian government, added Yusril, remains committed to consistently implementing the principles of international and national law. This includes dealing with sensitive issues related to citizenship and detention of Indonesian citizens abroad.