The Right to Work for Refugees in Indonesia: Between State Sovereignty and Human Rights Obligations

Abstract

The employment rights of Rohingya refugees in Indonesia remain legally uncertain due to the absence of a comprehensive national legal framework regulating refugees' access to employment. Although Indonesia is not a State Party to the 1951 Refugee Convention, it has adopted humanitarian policies that provide temporary protection for refugees without explicitly recognizing their right to work. This study aims to examine the legal framework governing the employment rights of Rohingya refugees in Indonesia, identify the legal and institutional barriers to labor market access, and evaluate policy options for strengthening refugee protection while maintaining national legal certainty. This research employs a qualitative normative legal approach based on doctrinal legal research. Primary legal materials include Indonesian legislation, particularly Presidential Regulation No. 125 of 2016 concerning the Handling of Refugees from Overseas, together with relevant international human rights instruments. Secondary legal materials consist of scholarly literature, policy reports, and publications issued by international organizations, while the collected materials are analyzed using statutory, conceptual, and comparative approaches. The findings indicate that Indonesian law does not explicitly authorize refugees to participate in the formal labor market, resulting in legal uncertainty and limiting access to decent employment. Consequently, Rohingya refugees rely primarily on informal work and humanitarian assistance, increasing their socio-economic vulnerability. The study further demonstrates a significant gap between international human rights standards recognizing the right to work and the existing Indonesian regulatory framework. This study concludes that strengthening legal certainty requires regulatory reform that accommodates limited employment opportunities for refugees through coordinated policies involving the government, international organizations, and local stakeholders. The findings contribute to the development of refugee law scholarship by proposing a balanced legal framework that reconciles humanitarian protection, labor market integration, and Indonesia's national legal interests.