Certificate of Citizenship (Indonesia)
A Republic of Indonesia Certificate of Citizenship (Indonesian: Surat Bukti Kewarganegaraan Republik Indonesia, abbreviated SBKRI) was an identity card establishing citizenship in the Republic of Indonesia.
The SBKRI was used to discriminate against Indonesians of Chinese descent. It was required to enter academia, obtain a passport, to register for an election, and to get married. The requirement was eventually abolished although local bureaucracies have continued to engage in abuses.
The legal bases for SBKRI legal was established with the Act No. 62 of 1958 issued by the Ministry of Justice G. A. Maengkom and approved by President Sukarno. It came in the wake of Mao Zedong's decree that all Chinese people everywhere are citizens of the People's Republic of China based on the principle of jus sanguinis (blood descendants). This was followed with the Dual Nationality Agreement between Indonesia and China between Zhou Enlai and Soenario in 1955.
On July 8, 1996, President Suharto issued Presidential Decree (Decree) No. 56 of 1996 on Proof of Indonesian Citizenship.
Chapter 4, point 2, reads, "For the citizens of the Republic of Indonesia, which has had a national identity card (KTP), or Family Card (KK), or a birth certificate, the fulfillment of the requirements for the particular interests simply use the Identity Card, or Card Family (KK), or the Birth Certificate. "
While Article 5 reads, "With the enactment of this Presidential Decree, all legislation that for certain interests require SBKRI, is no longer valid."
