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Secretary General of the Ministry of Law and Human Rights Andap Budhi Revianto. (ANTARA/Muhammad Zulfikar) - 

An official of the Directorate General of Immigration of the Ministry of Law and Human Rights has confirmed that the agency is ready to issue the travel document in lieu of passport (SPLP) to add to the contingency measures for Indonesians in Ukraine, if needed.

"Observing the recent escalation in the Russo-Ukrainian conflict, the Indonesian authority has taken strategic measures to secure its citizens," the ministry's Secretary General, Andap Budhi Revianto, said in his statement received in Jakarta on Friday.

Revianto said that despite some 140 Indonesian nationals in Ukraine who remain safe, further escalation of the conflict might compel the authority to prepare contingency measures to evacuate them from Ukraine.

To ensure prompt and secure evacuation of Indonesian nationals, the ministry is committed to providing any support necessary to ensure their safety, he said.He also affirmed that the agency is ready to issue the SPLP, a type of emergency travel document, for Indonesians who are evacuating themselves from Ukraine, if necessary.

"During the contingency situation, the passport may be damaged, lost, or left behind in a critical condition. The Immigration agency is ready to issue the SPLP as passport replacement for them," Revianto noted.

The secretary general said that according to Law No. 6 of 2011 on Immigration, a travel document in lieu of passport (SPLP) is a passport replacement that is issued in a particular condition and periods if passports could not be issued.

The SPLP will be valid only for a one-way trip, and Indonesian nationals who hold an SPLP would be required to apply for a new passport if they damage or lose the document in a contingency situation, he said.

Revianto added that the measures are being taken by the ministry to ensure the security and convenience of Indonesian nationals everywhere, particularly to citizens who are in critical situations abroad//ANT