The issue was the topic of discussion at the 5th Meeting of the Indonesia-Iran Consular Consultation held in Yogyakarta on August 26-28, 2019.
At the meeting, the Indonesian delegation, led by Foreign Affairs Ministry's Consular Director Prasetyo Adi, remarked that the country had formed a task force to manage foreign refugees since July 2019 to help repatriate Iranian refugees and asylum seekers due to the sluggish resettlement process in third countries.
The process has been stagnant in the last five to eight years as challenged by policies posed by recipient nations, according to a statement from Indonesia’s Foreign Affairs Ministry, Thursday.
The Iranian delegation, led by Foreign Affairs Ministry's Consular Director General, Ambassador Aliasghar Mohammadi, willingly received Indonesia's request to promptly facilitate Iranian refugees keen on returning to their home nation, particularly for those whose asylum claim was rejected.
The Iranian delegation will also embark on a visit to a refugee shelter to meet Iranian asylum seekers at a temporary shelter in Kalideres, Jakarta.
The Indonesia-Iran consular meeting held discussions on different issues, including notification and fast consular access for Indonesian citizens, undocumented migrant workers, mutual legal assistance and extradition, as well as visa facilitation for Iranians.
Consultations were held in a friendly and constructive environment to discuss both nations’ priority issues.
Coordinator of the Technical Team of the Indonesia-Iran Consular Meeting Boy Dharmawan remarked that both governments also deliberated on vital topics concerning consular affairs, including visas on arrival and business visas; consular access and notification mechanism; evacuation contingencies of Indonesian citizens in Iran; narcotics cooperation; granting remissions, amnesty, and cassation for prisoners of both countries; mixed marriages of Indonesian citizens and Iranians; labor cases; and transfer of prisoners.
On most discussed issues, a consensus was reached to resolve them with immediate effect and would subsequently be monitored together and become the objectives of the next consular meeting scheduled in Tehran in 2020. Related news: Kalideres refugees may be 'homeless' after Aug 31
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Translator: Yashinta Difa Pramudyani
Editor: Suharto
Copyright © ANTARA 2019
