Heru Budi Will Move Foreigners Looking For Asylum In Kuningan To Refugee Places

DOC VOI/Location of asylum seeker migrants in front of UNHCR Jakarta

JAKARTA - Acting Governor of DKI Jakarta Heru Budi Hartono said the DKI Provincial Government would move foreign nationals (foreigners) seeking asylum on the road in the Kuningan area, Setiabudi, South Jakarta, to refugee camps.

"I will straighten it out. It was not dismantled, but we will return them to the appropriate refugee camps," said Heru at Grand Hyatt, Central Jakarta, Tuesday, July 2.

However, Heru admitted that he had not yet determined where the new evacuation site for foreigners is now on the sidewalk on Jalan Setiabudi Selatan.

The head of the Presidential Secretariat said he would coordinate with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the UN agency that manages refugees, to find evacuation sites and take care of their needs.

"Of course, later the DKI regional government and UNHCR will have a place. The DKI Regional Government will pay attention to them," said Heru.

"Hopefully it's not on the road anymore. What are their daily needs, I think I can communicate with UNHCR," said Heru.

For information, dozens of foreigners without a place to live set up tents on the sidewalks of Jalan Setiabudi Selatan, precisely behind the UNHCR office. They are citizens of central eastern countries.

Some of them made the tent a bed, some of which were installing tarpaulins as roofs so they would not be exposed to the heat of the sun.

These foreign asylum seekers settled there because they wanted UNHCR to facilitate new residences. They use the bathroom of a house of worship like a mosque for their needs.

In 2019, this phenomenon also occurred along Jalan Kebon Sirih, Central Jakarta. They built a tent in front of the UNHCR office before moving to the Kuningan area.

Dozens of asylum seekers were in the spotlight because they were considered to have disrupted the smooth running of traffic and aesthetics in central Jakarta. The DKI Jakarta Provincial Government had facilitated shelters for their residence in the Kalideres area, West Jakarta. However, they reappeared and built tents on the streets.