Permit processing for foreign researchers 'easy'<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): State Minister for Research and Technology M.
\nHatta Rajasa said here on Monday that the processing of permits
\nfor research activities by foreigners in Indonesia was not as
\ncomplicated as thought.<\/p>\n
Hatta, who has only been at the helm for the past week,
\nreiterated that its procedure is very simple and doesn't take a
\nlong time.<\/p>\n
He made the remarks in response to the questioning of six
\nGerman students for alleged immigration violations. The students
\nwere here to do a demographical survey in a slum area of Karang
\nAnyar in Central Jakarta.<\/p>\n
According to the police, the six were part of a group of 27
\nstudents from the University of Bonn who arrived in Jakarta on
\ntourist visas on Friday.<\/p>\n
Many people attributed the frequent incidents of immigration
\nviolations to the arduous and time-consuming procedures for the
\nprocessing of research permits in the country.<\/p>\n
Hatta said that the government had assigned a special team to
\nassess applications submitted by foreign researchers intending to
\nget a permit to carry out studies in the country.<\/p>\n
The team comprises the Agency for the Assessment and
\nApplication of Technology (BPPT), the Indonesian Institute of
\nSciences (LIPI), the State Intelligence Coordinating Agency
\n(Bakin), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the National Police,
\nthe Attorney General's Office and the Ministry of Justice and
\nHuman Rights.<\/p>\n
Marzan Aziz Iskandar, BPPT representative in the team,
\nexplained that individual researchers were not allowed to enter
\nthe country.<\/p>\n
Only institutions or universities are allowed to send a
\nproposal on behalf of the individual researcher to LIPI before
\nbeing evaluated in the team's monthly meeting, he said.<\/p>\n
Marzan said the evaluation usually focused on several topics,
\nranging from the subject of the research and its location to
\nwhether the research had ever been conducted by other researchers
\nor not.<\/p>\n
Foreigners are not allowed to go to troubled provinces such as
\nAceh and Maluku, nor are they permitted to study our marine
\nresources\" he told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
Marzan also said that researchers, who failed to give regular
\nreports on their research activities, would receive a negative
\nassessment.<\/p>\n
After the permit is issued, the researchers may go to the
\nimmigration office to get their research visa for a specified
\nperiod of time depending on their request.<\/p>\n
\"This procedure takes at least three months and is not
\ndifficult at all,\" Marzan said.<\/p>\n
Hatta said that Indonesia was open to foreign researchers
\nintending to carry out research in the country but not without
\nthe proper permits.<\/p>\n
\"Research is universal, therefore it is beyond boundaries. But
\nresearchers should hold a permit, they should not just be let
\nloose.<\/p>\n
\"However, the bureaucracy for the permit processing should not
\nbe too tight because such research is purely for the sake of
\nscience. (bby)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/permit-processing-for-foreign-researchers-easy-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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