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  Today Online 20 Oct 06
Lifting the haze
Peat-land fires, which account for 60% of smoke, must be dealt with
Fawziah Selamat fawziah@mediacorp.com.sg

Straits Times 20 Oct 06
'Asean govts must act to take all culprits to task'
by Keith Lin

PlanetArk 20 Oct 06
Civic Groups Call for Name and Shame on Asia's Haze
Story by Hsu Chuang Khoo

Bernama 19 Oct 06
Regional NGOs Explore Possibility Of Suing Haze-Causing Companies
By Jackson Sawatan

Channel NewsAsia 19 Oct 06
Regional NGOs want to drive an economics study on impact of haze
By May Wong, Channel NewsAsia

SINGAPORE: Non-government organisations and think-tanks want to drive a study on the economic impact of the haze. This will help determine the losses in monetary and health costs, hopefully pushing governments into action.

The haze this year is the worst since the episode back in 1997, costing some US$9b in losses. Regional think-tanks want a more detailed study to assess the losses this time round, and will start it in a few months.

"We hope to instigate, initiate again, not just a dialogue like we did today but a more detailed study that can help put some facts and figures and in a sense, give the political will for countries to do the right thing. When we say well, we have so many days of dark sky, some people say what's the cost, what's the harm and we really need some facts and figures to that harm," said Assoc Prof Simon Tay, Chairman, Singapore Institute of International Affairs.

Prof Tay suggested that ASEAN countries should start putting money into the haze control fund, with Indonesia having concrete plans and a show of political will.

However, the organisations also agreed that it's not productive to point fingers and assign blame. "It is a challenge for Indonesia to be responding with action and of course, when one finger points, three fingers point back at ourselves, so we need to have a better kind of thinking and not too much finger pointing, because it doesn't solve problems," said Wiryono Sastrohandojo, Senior Researcher, Centre for Strategic and International Studies, Indonesia.

Mr Sastrohandojo pointed out that the haze was not only causing a considerable economic impact, but was also poisoning the "feeling of brotherhood" among ASEAN countries.

"This should not be viewed as Indonesia causing the problem and exporting the problem to other countries in ASEAN, which is very upset with Indonesia. If we put it this way, then we complicate the problem further, in terms of resolving it. Indonesia will feel rather defensive and it'll get upset and it's not a very good way of doing this," said Mohamed Jawhar Hassan, Chairman and CEO, Institute of Strategic and International Studies, Malaysia.

Participants at a forum organised by the Singapore Institute of International Affairs on Thursday all agree that the haze problem is a complex and expensive one.

Some of them noted that some of the burning areas are even larger than certain ASEAN countries, and they are committed to submit their findings and discussion issues back to their respective governments, hoping to pressure them into implementing concrete actions.

The 20 participants also felt that regional fund under the ASEAN pact should be set up to tackle the haze problem, regardless of whether Indonesia has ratified the agreement. - CNA /dt

Today Online 20 Oct 06
Lifting the haze
Peat-land fires, which account for 60% of smoke, must be dealt with
Fawziah Selamat fawziah@mediacorp.com.sg

THE bad news is that haze will continue to haunt Singapore and its neighbours over the next few years if the development of more land in Kalimantan, Riau and possibly parts of Malaysia remains unchecked.

But the good news is that addressing only a fraction of the fire-prone belt could lift most of the gloom. Specifically, the Indonesian peat-land.

That was the conclusion at a haze dialogue attended by 20 regional think-tanks and non-governmental organisations (NGOs), who favoured a focused approach over one that tried to solve all the problems.

Mr Simon Tay, chairman of Singapore Institute of International Affairs, said: "Fires from peat-land amount to 20 per cent of the fires but they are responsible for 60 per cent of the haze. This is a conservative figure; some NGOs think it is higher."

One such NGO is the Malaysian-based Global Environment Centre, whose director, Mr Faizal Parish, estimated that peat-lands are responsible for 80 to 90 per cent of the haze that has blanketed Singapore.

"In 1997-98, peat-land fires were responsible for 60 per cent of the haze. That was also the period that saw the beginning of the expansion of peat-land development in areas such as Jambi and Riau. Now, with unchecked development of those areas, it's climbed up by 20 to 30 per cent," said Mr Parish.

The reasons for peat-lands causing most of the haze are that they tend to burn longer than other types of land--months compared to days--and produce more smoke.

"A peat-land fire can burn four metres under the surface. Firefighters can only put out the surface fire, but below that, it will continue to burn, causing more fires later on," explained Mr Parish.

Ambassador Wiryono Sastrohandoyo, a senior fellow at Indonesia's Centre for Strategic and International Studies, said his country does not have the capability to handle the issue alone.

He called for the Association of South-east Asian Nastions' (Asean) member states to start pledging money to the proposed regional fund provided for in the Asean pact to combat the haze.

Echoing that sentiment, Mr Tay said: "Fulfilling that ambition of the pact will assure Indonesia that it won't be doing it on its own."

He added that not making Indonesia feel like it has been singled out for "punishment" on the haze issue will, in turn, encourage the political will needed by the Indonesian government to clamp down on businesses responsible for the fires.

In that regard, Ms Frances Seymour, the director-general of the Indonesian-based Centre for International Forestry Research, hoped that governments would distinguish between rural farmers and big companies responsible for starting the fires.

"The law needs to be tweaked to focus on prosecuting big companies--rather than poor farmers, who burn a small and specific area of land. There has been a serious lack of prosecutions made against the belligerent companies," said Ms Seymour. "So, the reality is companies cause the fires because they can get away with it."

She recommended a two-prong approach: A payment scheme for rural farmers to adopt alternative methods and work, as well as the implementation of a performance bond in which companies that flout regulations would be immediately punished with the forfeiture of their bond.

Straits Times 20 Oct 06
'Asean govts must act to take all culprits to task'
by Keith Lin

WARNING that the haze could cost the region more than US$9 billion (S$14 billion), civic groups yesterday urged governments in the region to ensure that those responsible for it would not walk away scot-free.

At a three-hour dialogue on the haze, which saw the participation of regional think-tanks and non-governmental organisations (NGOs), the region's governments were asked to act against recalcitrant plantation companies which resort to slash-and-burn methods to clear land.

'This is not a transitory problem,' said Professor Simon Tay of the Singapore Institute of International Affairs.

He noted that land development in Indonesia and Malaysia, together with global climate changes, will ensure that the problem, if left unchecked, will only be worse in the future. Indonesia's neighbours have in recent months grown increasingly frustrated over the fires, most of which are deliberately lit by farmers as well as by timber and palm oil plantation owners.

'Indonesia must take action to figure out which companies are involved - and perhaps even explore prosecuting the companies which are doing the wrong thing,' Prof Tay said.

The meeting also made the point that countries such as Singapore, Malaysia and Brunei should pledge more funds if they were keen on solving the regional haze problem.

Participants at the dialogue, which was organised by the Singapore Institute of International Affairs, also recommended that the best practices of those industries directly related to the haze problem, such as palm oil and forestry, be showcased.

The participants also asked for an action plan and a collective fund to finance haze prevention.

'A haze control fund should be something which Asean countries can put money into, to put their money where their mouths are,' said Prof Tay. 'There needs to be a concrete plan and political will; there also needs to be a sense of the costs involved. Paying for the action and then funding the appropriate response will be a logical and rational step.'

Around the region, there have been flight delays and cancellations, while the leisure and tourism industries have also taken a hit. Health problems are also reportedly on the rise, with respiratory problems on top of the list. The haze has also drifted into the Deepavali and Hari Raya season, the latter usually a peak travel period for Muslims from Malaysia and Indonesia.

'We hope...that governments that really see the severity of the problem, and have the resources and the goodwill to fund it, will do more,' Prof Tay added.

Datuk Seri Mohamed Jawhar Hassan, chairman and chief executive of Malaysia's Institute of Strategic and International Studies, said there was an incorrect perception among regional governments that the haze problem was solely Indonesia's to solve.

'The problem happens to be within Indonesia, (and) it is affecting the people of Indonesia...perhaps much more than the people of other countries,' he said. But 'it's a common problem, and therefore a shared responsibility and a common effort is required', he said.

First up though, regional think-tanks will submit a proposal to the Indonesian authorities, asking that they formulate a working plan to utilise funds. NGOs on their part can help by establishing a clearing house for information, such as linking satellite images of burning peat lands with their actual landowners.

Looking on the bright side, Mr Wiryono Sastrohandoyo, a senior fellow at Jakarta's Centre for Strategic and International Studies, said the haze has given Asean an opportunity to showcase its solidarity as a regional bloc.

PlanetArk 20 Oct 06
Civic Groups Call for Name and Shame on Asia's Haze
Story by Hsu Chuang Khoo

SINGAPORE: October 20, 2006 SINGAPORE - Southeast Asian civic groups on Thursday urged governments to name and shame those responsible for the haze that has blanketed the region, and warned that losses could top US$9 billion.

The haze is caused by forest fires that have raged for weeks in Indonesia, spreading smoke across much of Southeast Asia. Indonesia's neighbours have grown increasingly frustrated over the fires, most of which are deliberately lit by farmers as well as by timber and palm oil plantation owners.

"Indonesia must take action to figure out which companies are involved - and perhaps even explore prosecuting the companies which are doing the wrong thing," Simon Tay, chairman of the Singapore Institute of International Affairs, told a news conference after the civic groups met in Singapore.

The non-governmental organisations were from Brunei, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore -- all members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) -- which have been affected by the choking haze.

The organisations also asked for an action plan and a collective fund to finance haze prevention. "A haze control fund should be something which ASEAN countries can put money into, to put their money where their mouths are," added Tay. "There needs to be a concrete plan and political will; there also needs to be a sense of the costs involved. Paying for the action and then funding the appropriate response will be a logical and rational step."

Around Southeast Asia, airports are closing, leisure and tourism are taking a hit, and respiratory and breathing problems are on the rise.

The haza has come during the Muslim Hari Raya season, usually a peak period for travel. This time around, the haze could cost more than the estimated US$9 billion in economic losses that Southeast Asia suffered in 1997, the last time the haze was as bad, Tay said.

The problem has triggered fears of a repeat of the environmental disaster in 1997-98, when dry conditions linked to the El Nino weather pattern caused a choking haze that cost the region billions in economic losses.

Environment ministers from Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Brunei failed to reach a detailed attack plan when they met last week on Indonesia's Sumatra island to discuss the crisis.

"The idea that Jakarta is the problem and exporting the problem has to be modified," said Mohamed Jawhar Hassan, chairman of Malaysia's Institute of Strategic and International Studies. "It is affecting the people and the economy of Indonesia much more than the other countries. It's a common problem and therefore a shared responsibility."

Bernama 19 Oct 06
Regional NGOs Explore Possibility Of Suing Haze-Causing Companies
By Jackson Sawatan

SINGAPORE, Oct 19 (Bernama) -- Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) around the region are exploring the possibility of suing companies in their country of origins if there were evidence to implicate them with haze-causing fires on their land.

Such a possibility was among the issues discussed Thursday at a three-hour dialogue here which was attended by civil society and think tanks from Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Brunei.

Singapore Institute of International Affairs (SIIA) Chairman Simon Tay said the those attending the dialogue "had a sense" that the problem could get worse in the future as more land were being opened up for development in Indonesia's Kalimantan and Sumatra, and to a certain extent, in some parts of Malaysia.

He said that the possibility of further suits against the companies concerned was among actions that the NGOs could do on its own in the fight against the recurring problems, besides urging governments to implement what it had promised to do.

"(There were discussions) whether we can overlay the satellite images of the fire with land ownership patterns to see where the fire was coming from and to explore the possibility of suits in countries where the owners are based," he told reporters after the dialogue organised by SIIA.

Chairman and chief executive officer of Institute of Strategic and International Studies (ISIS), Malaysia, Datuk Seri Mohamed Jawhar Hassan was among those who attended the dialogue, held amid worsening haze situation in the region.

In Singapore, the Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) shot to unhealthy level this afternoon with a reading of 113 at 3pm before improving to moderate level below 100 at 6pm. Singapore's National Environment Agency (NEA) expects the hazy condition to persist here as the prevailing winds remained southeasterly, bringing smoke haze from forest fires in Kalimantan.

Answering a question, Tay acknowledged, that the success of prosecutions by NGOs against suspected fire-causing plantation owners had been limited. "There has been a number of suits attempted by Indonesian NGOs but there has been little satisfaction... they were either thrown out or not led to a strong decision. In our dialogue, we call on the Indonesian government itself to implement its own laws, whether against companies from Indonesia or from other countries.

"We recognised that prosecutions by NGOs in Indonesia have not had a success that they hopefully could have had. So its back to government prosecuting (the companies concerned)," he said.

The NGOs were also exploring other options such as engaging plantation owners to adopt best practices and environmental-friendly methods. "The dialogue emphasised the need for NGOs to really put forward recommendations for best policy practices in terms of developing the various sectors such as oil palm, forestry as well as pulp and paper, and to recognise many of the Indonesian companies which are doing the right things," Tay said.

Regional cooperation was equally critical in tackling the problem so as not to make Indonesia -- the epicenter of the haze problem -- feel it was being left alone to deal with the problem, said ISIS' Mohamed Jawhar.

"It no longer is a problem caused by Indonesia... it's now our common problem and it's important that we share the responsibility to address the issue," he added. -- BERNAMA
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