Indonesia's Birthday Gift, Directorate General of Immigration Releases New Face of Indonesian Passport

Liputan6.com, Jakarta The Republic of Indonesia passport has a new face. The Directorate General (DG) of Immigration has put the signature red and white colors of Indonesia's national flag in the design of the new passport. The newest design of the passport was announced at the 79th Anniversary of Indonesia's, at Hotel Indonesia Kempinski, Jakarta, on Saturday (17/8).

Speaking about the new passport design, Minister of Law and Human Rights Yasonna Laoly said he appreciated the work of the Directorate General of Immigration. He says the new passport design can bring positive changes, especially as a cultural ambassador for Indonesia in the world community.

"I do appreciate the achievements of General Director of Immigration and his staff for bringing positive changes, including the new passport design, that not only serves as our identity overseas, but also becomes a cultural ambassador to introduce the beauties and features of Indonesian to the world," said the Minister of Law and Human Rights in his opening remarks.

Director General of Immigration, Silmy Karim also explained the redesign of the passport is more than a cover color change. International standards and recommendations set out in The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Annex 9 on Facilitation Chapter 3, Subchapter C confirm that each member state must periodically update passport security techniques and features in accordance with the latest developments.

It is carried out to prevent any attempt of forgery, replication, replacing/deleting data and any other fraud of the passports. The changes and upgrading of the passport design is carried out to respond and adapt to changes in the immigration strategic environment that includes political, legal, social, cultural, and security aspects.

Silmy Karim further elaborated that the new passport design is only for e-passports. The changes have improved the material quality, as well as increasing the type and number of security features.

"Travel documents should contain techniques and security features that are able to protect against various forgery attacks, including replacement and disappearance of passport pages, particularly on the biodata section," said Silmy.

Combination of security features included in the redesign of the Indonesian passport such as a durable cover that is able to protect the chip. Passport biodata is made of multiple layers of polycarbonate and covered with a coating to shield it.

In addition, the paper of the passport document is also resistant and sensitive to chemicals. Inks are used, such as visible ink and invisible ink (fluorescent ink and infra red ink) that glow under the ultraviolet light. The technology is also used in the sewing yarn of the passbook, making it three-colored.

"In terms of appearance, the design of the passport sheet using fabric patterns characteristic of regions in Indonesia, and the pattern will be changing when viewed with UV light," said Silmy.

Launching the new passport design is part of the country's immigration efforts to reinforce the Indonesian passport. The combination of security features, raw materials, and advanced techniques become the main concern to ensure that passports will be protected during cross-border travel.

Therefore, the authentication of the document is easier. This condition will help when a passport is needed for physical identification as evidence in a court of law.

For your information, along the history of the Indonesian Immigration from 1945 to now, an Indonesian passport has had several changes in cover color.

In 1945-1958, the passport of Indonesia was colored light gray. Then, in 1959-1982 it changed to blue, and then in 1983 the passport cover changed to green. At 1995, the cover colors changed to dark green, and in the last decade, in 2014 until now, the passport cover color is turquoise.

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