President Prabowo Subianto has announced plans to welcome 1,000 refugees from Gaza, Palestine, as part of an effort to provide safe shelter for civilians affected by the prolonged conflict with Israel.
The proposal has sparked a range of responses from the public, with many supporting the initiative, while others have voiced concern that it could undermine the political status of Palestinian citizens.
Commenting on the matter, Professor Siti Mutiah Setiawati, a professor of Middle Eastern geopolitics at Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM), stated that accepting refugees from a war-torn region does not violate the principles of Indonesia’s foreign policy, as long as it does not disrupt national security, public order, or the broader interests of the people.
However, she argued that increasing contributions to UNRWA (The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine in the Near East) would be a more practical assistance.
“Indonesia could focus on boosting its contributions to UNRWA,” said the International Relations lecturer from the UGM Faculty of Social and Political Sciences (Fisipol UGM) on Wednesday (Apr. 16).
Professor Setiawati also suggested that the Indonesian government should encourage neighboring countries such as Egypt and Jordan to accept Palestinian refugees.
She explained that these nations share ethnic, cultural, and linguistic similarities with Gaza’s population. Additionally, their geographic proximity would make the logistics of refugee relocation easier and more feasible than bringing them to Indonesia.
Indonesia has long expressed its solidarity with the Palestinian people through political and economic support.
Its political support includes diplomatic engagement with Arab and other Middle Eastern countries to find solutions to the ongoing humanitarian crisis.
“The Palestinian issue has long been viewed as a collective concern among Arab nations. It must be reiterated that a threat to one Arab country is considered a threat to all,” Professor Setiawati added.
Even so, she acknowledged and appreciated the Indonesian government’s humanitarian intentions, especially given that 95 percent of homes in Gaza have been destroyed, leaving residents with nowhere to return.
Nonetheless, she emphasized the need to consider several geopolitical aspects of the proposal carefully. These include the logistical challenges of transporting refugees, the facilities to host them in Indonesia, and UNRWA’s role and responsibilities.
According to the professor, hosting Palestinian refugees could result in both positive and negative consequences.
On the one hand, it could elevate Indonesia’s standing on the international stage by reinforcing its humanitarian foreign policy.
“This would strengthen Indonesia’s reputation as a nation with a foreign policy grounded in human compassion,” she said.
On the other hand, the plan also comes with several potential downsides. Critics of the initiative have pointed to concerns regarding the number of refugees, their physical and mental health conditions, the financial costs involved, the lack of prepared accommodations, and the technical challenges of transporting the refugees to Indonesia.
“Detailed data on the refugees, such as their age, gender, health, and background, must be prepared. Also, if the settlement area is located near local communities, the potential for cultural clashes must be taken into account,” she concluded.
Author: Leony
Editor: Gusti Grehenson
Post-editor: Afifudin Baliya
Photograph: AFP