Indonesia must stop hiding behind the smoke

During the Asean foreign ministers’ meeting in Brunei last week, it was unnecessary to issue a long statement on the annual problem of haze caused by forest fires in Indonesia. It is meaningless for the regional trade bloc to do so unless words are backed up by action to honour and implement remedial provisions that are already in place.

The haze caused by burning trees to clear land for palm-oil plantations in Sumatra is still polluting the air in neighbouring countries. Five of the ten countries in the group are suffering from the problem, with Singapore and Malaysia facing the most serious air pollution in a decade.

The issue is not new in this region. Southeast Asian countries have lived with the problem since 1997. Ministers and concerned officials have sat down together many times over the years to seek a solution. But the haze keeps returning almost every year as farmers and businesses burn and clear land for replanting. In many cases, wind and rain help solve the problem naturally, but it seems that the authorities enjoy only talking and not acting to resolve the issue.

The outcome of a series of talks after the 1998 haze crisis gave the birth to the Asean Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution in 2002. This pact requires members of the bloc to cooperate on developing and implementing measures to prevent, monitor and mitigate haze pollution by controlling forest fires; developing early-warning systems; exchanging information and technology; and providing mutual assistance when the problem reaches crisis level.

Under the pact, member countries must respond promptly to a request for relevant information sought by other states that are, or might be, affected by the haze, with a view to minimising the consequences.

The most important element of the agreement requires signatories to take legal, administrative or other measures to honour their obligations.

The pact also provides other mechanisms and instruments, including financial, for the grouping to deal with the haze problem when it arises.

Nine out of ten members of Asean, excluding Indonesia, have ratified the 2002 pact since signing. Jakarta has still not made it clear when it will ratify and implement the provisions of the agreement in order to tackle the problem its citizens cause almost every year.

The annual meeting of the Asean foreign ministers last week took place as the haze pollution worsened. The ministers called on Indonesia to fulfil the obligations it agreed to 13 years ago.

The joint communiqué issued after the meeting on Sunday devoted a long paragraph to the haze issue, giving importance to regional obligations to tackle the problem in a cooperative manner.

The foreign ministers from Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore called a separate meeting on the sidelines to discuss the matter. Jakarta came under pressure to take action against large private firms that use slash-and-burn methods to clear land for palm plantations. Indonesia says it is extinguishing the fires and reducing the haze, but it still has many other things to do to meet its obligations agreed upon earlier.

Actions speak louder than words. Ratification and implementation of the 2002 agreement was the earlier task that members of Asean were supposed to do. All except one recalcitrant member has done so. Unless the agreement is implemented in full, it’s useless to call meetings, talk, issue statements and then do nothing every time the problem occurs.