Anita Rachman – The House of Representatives and the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights agreed on Thursday to introduce drastic rule changes relating to residential and work permits for foreign spouses in mixed marriages, signing a long-awaited draft immigration bill.

Lawmaker Pieter Zulkifli of the Democratic Party said the draft bill could go before a plenary session of the House next Thursday.

Eva Kusuma Sundari, a member of House Commission III overseeing legal affairs, from the opposition Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), said that under the new rules, expatriates married to Indonesians would automatically be granted a permanent residence permit as long as the Indonesian spouse can provide sponsorship.

These expatriates currently have to annually renew a temporary residence permit, also known as Kitas. The bill would even allow these expatriates to stay in the country after divorcing their Indonesian partner as long as their marriage lasted at least 10 years.

Eva said this provision was necessary in light of the rights of children after a divorce. Foreign spouses in a mixed marriage would also be allowed to work in the country, she said.

However, Syarifuddin Sudding, a Commission III member from the People's Conscience Party (Hanura), warned the government would not have mercy on those abusing the regulations, citing the example of fake marriages to acquire a residence permit. Jail terms of up to five years and fines of up to Rp 500 million ($57,500) awaited violators, he said. "I hope the new regulations will not be used as a new opportunity for those who [just] want to get a permanent residence permit," Sudding said.

Minister of Justice and Human Rights Patrialis Akbar said the bill was "very humane," and he hoped all lawmakers would approve the bill.

The Democrats' Pieter said foreign spouses would be allowed to work in the country, but they needed to show they had skills. "At the moment, you have to wait five years or be sponsored by a company to work. But under the new regulation, you can work immediately, as long as you can show skills in a certain field."

However, he added that the bill did not cover issues of property ownership related to foreign spouses. Eva said that issue would be regulated in another bill.

Julie Mace, a representative for the International Rainbow Alliance (APAB) and the Indonesian Mixed Marriage Society (PerCa Indonesia), welcomed the long-awaited move, saying it meets most of the aspirations of foreigners in mixed marriages.