Ministry of Law: LPDP Alumni Child in 'I'm Enough as Indonesian' Row Still Indonesian Citizen

The Directorate General of Administration and General Law at Indonesia’s Ministry of Law (Ditjen AHU Kemenkum), Widodo, stated that the child of an LPDP alumni member with initials DS—who sparked public backlash following controversial remarks that “I’m enough as an Indonesian, my child shouldn’t be”—remains an Indonesian citizen.

Widodo noted that England, where DS’s child was born, does not practise ius soli (birthright citizenship), and therefore the child would not automatically become a British citizen despite being born there.

“This raises a question: was the child indeed born in England, whilst England is one of the countries that does not practise ius soli? It does not adopt ius soli, it is not based on the line of birthplace,” Widodo stated during a press conference at the Ministry of Law’s office in South Jakarta on Thursday (26 February 2026).

Widodo stated that DS, her husband, and their child currently all hold Indonesian citizenship status. He alleged that DS had violated child protection rights by attempting to shift her child’s citizenship status from an early age.

“The child is still relatively young, not yet an adult. Based on lineage and birth circumstances and the parents’ status, the child certainly remains an Indonesian citizen. However, the parents appear to have shifted or misrepresented this as if the child were a foreign national. This clearly violates child protection rights,” he said.

Nevertheless, Widodo did not rule out the possibility that DS’s child could obtain a British passport through the permanent resident system. However, such systems are typically intended for adults.

“It is possible that after continuously residing somewhere for five years and becoming a permanent resident, there is potential to become a citizen of another country. However, under our legislation, automatically—given that the parents are Indonesian citizens—the child automatically becomes an Indonesian citizen,” Widodo explained.

“Even if the person in question were to adopt the permanent resident system there, that would be for an adult or grown person. This is what we are currently confirming,” he added.

Widodo stated that the Ministry of Law had not yet coordinated with DS’s family. According to him, the ministry would actively coordinate with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Kemlu) and the British Embassy.

“To date, there has been no communication or coordination with the Ministry of Law, specifically from the Directorate General of AHU with the person in question. We may actively communicate with Kemlu and the British Embassy regarding the status of the person concerned,” he said.