Haze declared natural disaster

JAKARTA (JP): The government acknowledged yesterday that the smoldering forest fires and haze in Sumatra and Kalimantan were natural disasters of national proportions but it fell short of declaring a state of emergency.

Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare Azwar Anas reported to President Soeharto yesterday, the third time this week, to brief him on the fires and haze, and the measures being taken to deal with the problems.

When asked about the exact presidential instruction, Azwar said: "This is a national, natural disaster, but it is not a state of emergency. There is no need for that."

Separately, Soeharto called for concerted efforts by the government and the people to overcome the disaster.

"The President has given the necessary instruction to all officials in central and regional administrations and is appealing to all people to mobilize themselves to overcome the problem," Minister/State Secretary Moerdiono said.

Azwar, who chairs the National Coordinating Board for Disaster Prevention, said there was no immediate plan to evacuate people.

"We are dealing with haze. Where would we evacuate them to?" he asked. "The best thing for them to do is to stay indoors," he added.

Meanwhile, efforts focused on putting out the forest fires, with Malaysian firefighters joining in the endeavor.

Jambi, South Sumatra, Riau, Lampung, West Kalimantan, Central Kalimantan, East Kalimantan and South Kalimantan are worst affected by the fires.

The smog has crippled some towns in Sumatra and Kalimantan, and also affected neighboring Malaysia and Singapore, where the air quality has reportedly reached dangerous levels.

International offers of help have also poured in.

World Bank chief James Wolfensohn, who was in Hong Kong for a joint meeting with the International Monetary Fund, made a broad offer of emergency funding to help contain the problem, Reuters reported.

"We are prepared to come in, in any way we can, on an emergency basis if funding is needed," Wolfensohn said.

Azwar listed other offers: 300 portable water cannons worth Rp 430 million and protective masks and medicine from Japan, and expertise from France. He said he was also expecting assistance from South Korea and the United States.

An Indonesian request for Japan to send water bombers was refused, "maybe because the cost is too high," he said.

The president of the World Wide Fund for Nature, Syed Babar Ali, who was in Jakarta yesterday, described the fires and haze as an international catastrophe.

Azwar acknowledged that Indonesia had little experience in combating forest fires.

He said fire had razed 71,777 hectares of forest land in Kalimantan and 11,562 hectares in Sumatra. The total was lower than in 1994 when 161,000 hectares were blackened, he noted.

The extent of the fires differed from agency to agency.

State Minister of Environment Sarwono Kusumaatmadja had earlier claimed at least 300,000 hectares of forest, mostly in Sumatra and Kalimantan, had been razed by the fires.

The Ministry of Health has meanwhile called on governors in provinces affected by haze to call on people to use protective masks for health reasons.

Some provinces like Jambi had already run out of masks, Azwar noted.

The Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi) in Jakarta sent 8,000 protective masks to Kalimantan yesterday and called on the public to contribute by sending in money to its office.

It said that a box containing 50 masks cost Rp 25,000.

Walhi announced that it had opened a command post in Jakarta, Pontianak, Banjarmasin and Samarinda to assist people to overcome the haze problem.

East Kalimantan Deputy Governor Suwarna Abdul Fatah, however, told Antara in Samarinda that the masks had not been effective.

The number of people suffering from respiratory problems in East Kalimantan has risen to 25 percent to 10,000 people during this prolonged dry season.

Meanwhile, Central Kalimantan police questioned yesterday the managers of 35 companies suspected of slash and burn practices in clearing land for new palm oil plantations. (prb)

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