Juwono gives forest fires top priority<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Only hours after being installed as the new
\nState Minister of Environment, Juwono Sudarsono declared his
\nintention to instill \"a sense of crisis\" in the public over the
\nthreat of widespread forest fires.<\/p>\n
Speaking to journalists after taking over the post from
\nSarwono Kusumaatmadja, Juwono said that forest fires would damage
\nIndonesia's international image if the nation failed to properly
\nhandle the recurring problem.<\/p>\n
\"We will be under international scrutiny for the problems of
\nforest fires and haze... especially when the Commonwealth Games
\ncome around this October,\" Juwono said, referring to the major
\nsporting event which the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur will
\nhost later this year. All Commonwealth nations will be in
\nattendance, including England and Australia.<\/p>\n
Over the past two months, fires have been raging over almost
\n80,000 hectares of forest and brush in East Kalimantan. The
\nprovince borders the Malaysian states of Sarawak and Sabah on the
\nisland of Borneo.<\/p>\n
Local people in the province and residents of neighboring
\nSingapore and Malaysia have expressed concern that choking smog,
\ncaused by massive fires in Sumatra and Kalimantan last year, will
\nreturn.<\/p>\n
Over 20 million people in Kalimantan and Sumatra were exposed
\nto hazardous haze caused by fires which burned for around nine
\nmonths last year. The World Wide Fund for Nature said that the
\nhaze cost Indonesia over US$900 million in short-term health
\ncosts alone.<\/p>\n
This year, more than 2,000 East Kalimantan residents have
\nreportedly suffered respiratory ailments caused by haze over the
\npast two months.<\/p>\n
Yesterday, head of the East Kalimantan Environmental Impact
\nManagement Agency Awang Farouk Ishak told Antara that 76,949.40
\nhectares of forest have been destroyed by fires this year,
\ncausing losses of up to Rp 220,032 billion (US$22 million).<\/p>\n
Juwono, who is also Chairman of the Environmental Impact
\nManagement Agency (Bapedal), said that to help counter the wide
\nregional and international impact of this year's fires, the
\ncountry would have to launch an \"all-out environmental diplomacy
\ndrive\".<\/p>\n
\"We must work hard in order to be able to cope with
\nenvironmental problems which have a regional and international
\nimpact,\" Juwono, a professor of international politics at the
\nUniversity of Indonesia, said.<\/p>\n
He reiterated his intention to instill a sense of urgency in
\nthe public over environmental issues, conceding that this would
\nbe difficult to achieve. However, he felt that with the country
\nfacing financial and environmental crises, the gravity of the
\nsituation may soon hit home.<\/p>\n
Juwono called on every concerned member of society to help him
\nrouse a sense of urgency, and appealed specifically to his
\npredecessors Sarwono and Emil Salim who were in attendance at the
\nceremony.<\/p>\n
Also present yesterday were over 100 officials from the
\nMinistry of Environment and environmental activists.<\/p>\n
In his speech after handing over to Juwono, Sarwono said he
\nwas \"relieved and proud\" that his successor was \"a man of
\nlearning and integrity\".<\/p>\n
Also yesterday new ministers took over the jobs from their
\npredecessors in their respective offices. (aan)<\/p>",
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