TINJAUAN HUKUM INTERNASIONAL TERHADAP BATAS WAKTU TINGGAL PENGUNGSI DI NEGARA TRANSIT

Abstrak

Fenomena pengungsian internasional terus mengalami peningkatan dari tahun ke tahun dan menimbulkan persoalan hukum yang semakin kompleks, khususnya terkait keberadaan pengungsi di negara transit. Konvensi Jenewa Tahun 1951 tentang Status Pengungsi dan Protokol New York Tahun 1967 memang telah mengatur prinsip-prinsip perlindungan pengungsi, seperti prinsip non-refoulement, hak atas perlindungan, dan larangan pengusiran sewenang-wenang. Namun demikian, instrumen hukum internasional tersebut belum secara eksplisit mengatur mengenai batas waktu tinggal pengungsi di negara transit. Kekosongan hukum ini menimbulkan ketidakpastian status bagi pengungsi sekaligus membebani negara transit, baik negara pihak maupun non-pihak Konvensi 1951, seperti Türkiye (Turki) dan Indonesia.Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menganalisis pengaturan hukum internasional terkait batas waktu tinggal pengungsi di negara transit, mengkaji tanggung jawab negara transit dalam perspektif hukum internasional, serta menelaah implikasi hukum dan kemanusiaan akibat tidak adanya pengaturan yang jelas mengenai durasi tinggal pengungsi. Penelitian ini menggunakan metode penelitian hukum normatif dengan pendekatan perundang-undangan (statute approach), pendekatan konseptual (conceptual approach), dan pendekatan perbandingan (comparative approach). Bahan hukum yang digunakan terdiri atas bahan hukum primer, sekunder, dan tersier yang dianalisis secara kualitatif.Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa hukum internasional belum memberikan kepastian hukum mengenai batas waktu tinggal pengungsi di negara transit. Konvensi 1951 dan Protokol 1967 hanya mengatur standar minimum perlindungan pengungsi tanpa menentukan durasi keberadaan mereka di wilayah negara transit. Akibatnya, pengungsi sering kali mengalami situasi protracted refugee situation atau pengungsian berkepanjangan yang berdampak pada aspek sosial, ekonomi, keamanan, dan hak asasi manusia. Di sisi lain, negara transit menghadapi beban administratif, ekonomi, dan sosial yang semakin besar tanpa adanya mekanisme pembagian tanggung jawab internasional (burden sharing) yang efektif. Dalam konteks ini, prinsip-prinsip hukum internasional seperti perlindungan HAM, solidaritas internasional, dan tanggung jawab bersama (shared responsibility) seharusnya menjadi dasar pembentukan mekanisme internasional yang lebih komprehensif terkait pengaturan masa tinggal pengungsi di negara transit.Penelitian ini menyimpulkan bahwa diperlukan reformulasi hukum internasional mengenai pengungsi, khususnya melalui pengaturan yang lebih jelas terkait batas waktu tinggal pengungsi di negara transit, mekanisme penempatan kembali (resettlement), serta penguatan kerja sama internasional guna menciptakan kepastian hukum, perlindungan HAM, dan keseimbangan tanggung jawab antarnegara.

The issue of international refugees has continued to increase significantly and has created increasingly complex legal challenges, particularly concerning the presence of refugees in transit countries. The 1951 Geneva Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and the 1967 New York Protocol have established fundamental principles of refugee protection, including the principle of non-refoulement, the right to protection, and the prohibition of arbitrary expulsion. Nevertheless, these international legal instruments do not explicitly regulate the time limit for refugees to remain in transit countries. This legal vacuum has generated prolonged uncertainty regarding refugee status while simultaneously imposing substantial social, economic, and administrative burdens upon transit states, both State Parties and non-State Parties to the 1951 Convention, such as Türkiye and Indonesia. This research aims to analyze the regulation of international law concerning the duration of refugees’ stay in transit countries, examine the responsibilities of transit states within the framework of international law, and assess the legal and humanitarian implications arising from the absence of clear regulations governing refugees’ length of stay. This study employs normative legal research using statutory, conceptual, and comparative approaches. The legal materials consist of primary, secondary, and tertiary legal sources, which are analyzed qualitatively.The findings demonstrate that international law has not provided legal certainty regarding the duration of refugees’ stay in transit countries. The 1951 Convention and the 1967 Protocol merely establish minimum standards of refugee protection without determining the permissible duration of refugees’ presence within transit states. Consequently, refugees frequently experience protracted refugee situations, which adversely affect social, economic, security, and human rights dimensions. At the same time, transit countries face increasing administrative, economic, and social burdens in the absence of an effective international burden-sharing mechanism. In this regard, international legal principles such as human rights protection, international solidarity, and shared responsibility should serve as the normative foundation for developing a more comprehensive international mechanism governing the duration of refugees’ stay in transit countries.This research concludes that the international refugee law regime requires reformulation, particularly through the establishment of clearer regulations concerning the time limit for refugees residing in transit countries, the strengthening of resettlement mechanisms, and the enhancement of international cooperation in order to ensure legal certainty, human rights protection, and a balanced distribution of responsibilities among states.