F

oreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi has sent a team of government officials to help Indonesians applying for a Saudi amnesty for people who are overstaying visas in the Arab kingdom, a ministry official has said.

The team consists of officials from the Foreign Ministry, the Law and Human Rights Ministry and the Agency for the Placement and Protection of Indonesian Migrant Workers (BNP2TKI).

It has been tasked with expediting services for overstayers partaking in the amnesty and must also engage in shuttle diplomacy with relevant Saudi authorities to iron out any kinks in the process.

“The Foreign Minister asked us to ensure that negative experiences from the 2013 program are not repeated,” said Lalu Muhammad Iqbal, the foreign ministry’s director for the protection of Indonesian nationals and entities abroad, on Tuesday in a statement.

The government of Saudi Arabia implemented a 90-day amnesty starting March 29 for hundreds of thousands of undocumented foreign workers and immigration offenders in the country.

It provides waivers for participants who would otherwise be liable to fines, detention or blacklisting. Those who are eligible must be able to present travel documents in lieu of passports (SPLP) from the Indonesian missions in Riyadh and Jeddah.

According to government figures, an estimated 25,000 to 30,000 Indonesian overstayers are taking part in the program. As of Monday, 4,785 Indonesian overstayers registered for amnesty.