Speaking at a coordination meeting on PPDs in Manado, North Sulawesi, on Thursday, Agato P. P. Simamora, Assistant Deputy for Immigration Services Strategic Coordination at the Coordinating Ministry for Legal, Human Rights, Immigration, and Corrections, stressed the importance of accelerating solutions to strategic immigration issues.
"We need to strengthen cross-sectoral coordination to accelerate the resolution of various strategic immigration issues, especially concerning the handling of PPDs in North Sulawesi," he said.
He urged the provincial government to facilitate data collection and verification with the local immigration office, including the issuance of residency documents.
Coordination with the Consulate General of the Philippines in Manado, he added, is also vital to confirm the citizenship status of PPDs in the province.
"Resolving this issue is not merely an international legal obligation but also a concrete manifestation of Indonesia's commitment to upholding human rights and humanitarian principles," Simamora noted.
He expressed hope that PPDs verified by the Philippine Consulate General would soon be granted passports, which would then serve as the basis for Indonesian immigration authorities to issue special visas and stay permits.
He emphasized that handling PPDs goes beyond administrative matters.
"This is not just about data collection but also about humanity and the state's responsibility to prevent statelessness," he said.
The Indonesian government, he affirmed, seeks to ensure that citizens of Philippine descent in North Sulawesi receive legal certainty, protection of civil rights, and safeguards against exploitation.
On the same occasion, Philippine Vice Consul Manfred Neale Manalo announced that Manila would soon dispatch a verification team to expedite passport issuance.
North Sulawesi and the southern Philippines share deep cultural and linguistic ties. Some PPDs descend from Filipino immigrants who arrived in the 19th century. Many families have lived there for generations without proper citizenship documents, leaving them vulnerable to statelessness.
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Translator: Karel Alexander Polakitan, Katriana
Editor: Anton Santoso
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