Haze from Indonesian forest fires tests Malaysian patience
Sarban Singh, New Straits Times, Kuala Lumpur
Malaysians are a tolerant lot. But there is a limit to even this legendary patience when the consequences for health, the economy and quality of life are grave.
And they are grave every time the pall of suffocating smoke visits the country from across the Malacca Straits. Businesses suffer, schools are closed, tourism plunges and health problems soar.
Malaysians are forced to make do without their daily dosage of teh tarik to stay indoors and this is evident with mamak stalls seeing fewer customers.
The recurring haze has changed the lives of Malaysians as quickly as it came.
Families are forced to stay indoors. Many have left the Klang Valley for a longer weekend in other parts of the country where the air is cleaner. Equally many are at a loss what to do.
Perhaps as frustrating as the muggy feeling is the sense of helplessness many Malaysians feel over the source of the haze -- the forest fires in Indonesia -- and the denial and cavalier attitude of some Indonesians toward the suffering here.
Latest satellite images shows that there are 542 hotspots in Sumatra alone, the prime culprit for the mess in the Klang Valley.
It left the authorities with no choice but an unprecedented declaration of emergency in the peninsula when API (air pollutant index) readings in parts of Selangor breached the 500 mark.
The last time an emergency was declared was in Sarawak in 1997 when the API breached 800.
When this happened, Malaysia reacted promptly. We proposed several measures to prevent a recurrence.
The 1997 fires alone caused some US$4.5 billion (RM17.55 billion) losses to Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. Malaysia is estimated to have lost some $300 million in the industrial and tourism sectors alone. But yet, we did not protest. We remained tolerant and acted in the spirit of good neighborliness.
We sent our firemen and personnel from other agencies to help their counterparts in Indonesia to fight the forest fires. We did that at our own expense. We were always there to help.
We then suggested the ASEAN Transboundary Haze Pollution Control Agreement where member countries could jointly combat the problem which had plagued the region for the past decade.
The plan also requires the country of haze origin to respond promptly to a request for information from a country or countries that are or may be affected by the pollution.
We pushed for it and on June 11, 2002, this became a reality when all 10 members signed it at the World Land & Forest Fire Hazards Conference in Kuala Lumpur.
Among others, the agreement spells out an action plan with specific mechanisms that will hold each ASEAN nation responsible for handling haze from forest fires within its boundaries.
It also called on members to implement legislative and other regulatory measures to promote zero-burning policies, strengthen emergency response capabilities and develop individual or collective strategies for awareness and to enhance technical co- operation and scientific research.
ASEAN received kudos from other world agencies, including the United Nations, as the agreement was the first of its kind.
But it is hardly surprising that years later, the Indonesian Government is still waiting for approval from its Parliament to ratify the agreement. Why that is so is anyone's guess.
Sadly, Malaysians have been at the receiving end since the 1997 episode. None of the proposals mooted since then have been implemented, not even in the good neighborliness spirit of ASEAN.
"I have no choice but to run away from KL," quipped S.M. Idris, the country's grand old man of consumerism.
"I mean, how can anyone breathe here. This (the haze) has been a recurring problem for the past 20 years and yet we have not learnt anything," says the Penangite, his words imbued with obvious sarcasm.
An emergency was declared on Thursday in worst-hit areas Port Klang and Kuala Selangor, an indication that things may not get better soon. When an emergency is declared, government and private offices must be closed. Plantations, quarries and construction sites must be out of bounds.
It's sheer misery, particularly for the average wage earner. The plantation worker, many of whom are daily paid, continue to suffer.
Malaysia even proposed that ASEAN countries adopt one or two of 17 districts in Indonesia that are plagued by fires.
We also proposed to ASEAN and other developed countries to provide financial aid, human resources, fire fighting equipment and expertise to the Indonesians who claim to be unable to effectively deal with the problem.
But apathy and corruption derailed this noble effort.
How long are Malaysians going to suffer in silence?
Where do we go from here? Should we accept this as fate and absolve the Indonesians of any wrongdoing simply because they are powerless against the fires?
Perhaps we need to give serious thought to a remark by Institute for Medical Research environment health department head Stephen Ambu.
During the same conference where the transboundary haze agreement was signed, he warned that the emissions of sulphur dioxide, harmful particulate matter and other chemical pollutants will increase drastically in the region by 2005 if member nations do not abide by the agreement.
This today sounds prophetic.