Making a living despite work prohibitions: Creativity, entrepreneurship and (self-)employment among refugees in Indonesia

Despite having hosted refugees for more than two decades, Indonesia does not offer local integration as a durable solution for refugees and grants only limited rights to them. Under Indonesian law refugees are not allowed to work and earn an income, leaving many of them dependent on minimal monthly stipends from charities and international organisations, their own savings, and remittances. This chapter focuses on how some refugees manage to earn a living while waiting for resettlement. Although violation of work prohibitions can have severe sentences and disciplinary measures, such as arrest and detention, more and more refugees engage in income-generation strategies that circumvent the prohibitions. Using qualitative interview data collected during fieldwork, this chapter presents three case studies of how refugees make a living in Indonesia. From these case studies and field observations of the Indonesian government’s growing preparedness to consider some form of work rights for refugees, usually framed as ‘livelihoods’ or ‘productivity empowerment’, this chapter concludes with a cautious optimism for positive change ahead.