REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, YOGYAKARTA -- Indonesian Islamic University (UII) Yogyakarta lecturer Ahmad Munasif Rafie Pratama (AMRP), who reportedly went missing after attending an academic function in Norway, was found safe in the United States, according to the Foreign Affairs Ministry.
The ministry's Director for the Protection of Citizens and Legal Entities Abroad, Judha Nugraha, said that he and Consul General of Indonesia in New York, Winanto Adi, have engaged in contact with Pratama.
"The Indonesian Consulate General in New York have also met him. At present, AMRP is in the United States and, Praise be to God, is safe and sound," Nugraha stated in a short message on Friday.
The lecturer has also resumed communication with his family and his campus in Indonesia to inform about his current conditions, including his health. As AMRP's position and conditions have been known, the assignment to seek his whereabouts has now ended, he said.
"The Foreign Affairs Ministry and the Consulate General in New York will constantly monitor AMRP's conditions and provide necessary services and protection," the ministry director affirmed.
Nugraha stated that Pratama and his family are requesting privacy at this time and appealed to the public to stop speculating about his whereabouts and conditions.
Pratama was reported missing after attending a global mobility activity in Norway earlier this month. He failed to arrive at the expected time of 6 pm local time at the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, Banten, on February 16 at the end of his overseas assignment.
The family reported that the last contact with Pratama was made at noon on February 12, the day he was supposed to start his return journey from Oslo, Norway, via a transit in Istanbul, Turkey.
An investigation by the Indonesian Police, in coordination with Indonesian embassies, later confirmed that AMRP had shifted his route to the United States during his transit in Istanbul, as he was seen entering Boston Airport in Massachusetts on February 13. The police also concluded that the lecturer decided to reroute without notifying his colleagues.
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