Mixed couples face citizenship woes

Tertiani ZB Simanjuntak, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Having a baby can be costly, but while Maya Miranda Ambarsari was ready to pay for the basics, she was unaware of the excessive complexity that marks registering the birth of a baby born to a mixed couple here.

After recovering from the delivery of her son via caesarean section, Maya and her expatriate husband were shocked to find bills and fines awaiting them, totaling Rp 15 million (US$1,630).

"I didn't know that I had to notify several government institutions within two weeks of the delivery of my baby to obtain a birth certificate. Even the immigration office acknowledges the lack of information available on the regulations for mixed-marriage couples," she said.

Although the process of registering her son's birth was costly and marked by red tape, her son was not given dual citizenship.

"When he turns 18, if he is living abroad, he has to have a sponsor to return home, even as a tourist," said the lawyer.

Another woman, who is also married to a foreigner, opted to tell officials her daughter was born out of wedlock, just to make her an Indonesian citizen.

Using the ius sanguinis (blood line) principle, Law No. 62/1958 on citizenship -- which is now under revision --fails to protect mixed couples and their children.

Any children of the marriage will automatically be given the same citizenship as their father and cannot enter national schools but international schools, which are not available in every region and are comparatively expensive.

In the draft revision of the law -- which is yet to be passed, although it has been deliberated by the House of Representatives for almost two years -- new regulations have been added to prevent dual citizenship.

It states that an infant whose father is a foreigner and mother is an Indonesian can obtain Indonesian citizenship if it is the wish of their parents.

The nationality of their children was a popular topic of conversation among members of the Association of Indonesian Women in Multinational Marriages (Srikandi), who celebrated the organization's fourth anniversary on Sunday.

Holding a Family Fun Day, dozens of mixed couples and their children shared their experiences and problems due to the citizenship law, and elected Maya as their next chairwoman.

"At present were are engaged in efforts to make the government see that these bilingual, bi-cultural children, who often study abroad, are the country's assets. Why can't the government make an exception for them?" Maya remarked.