Senior N. Sumatra officials slam Malaysia over haze

Apriadi Gunawan, The Jakarta Post, Medan

A North Sumatra administration report has criticized Malaysia's "sluggishness" in efforts to put out its forest fires that have shrouded the region in a thick, even perhaps deadly, haze.

An expert team of administration staff recommended that the provincial government urge the Malaysian government to take effective and immediate measures to fight the fires to limit the increasing adverse impact on North Sumatra.

"The North Sumatra administration should voice its reaction because the effects of the forest fires in Malaysia have disturbed the activities of many people here," said Polin Pospos, who led the team of seven experts.

He was speaking to The Jakarta Post after a routine meeting with North Sumatra Governor T. Rizal Nurdin at the latter's office in the provincial capital of Medan.

The haze, blanketing towns in recent weeks, has disrupted sea, air and land transportation in the province.

At least five people were killed and seven others seriously injured in a car crash last Sunday blamed on the poor visibility caused by the haze in Labuhan Batu, which along with the regency of Asahan, is among the worst affected areas.

Earlier, a cargo vessel traveling from Singapore collided with a dredger near the Belawan seaport, while a Garuda plane could not land in Medan due to the limited visibility. Ironically, it was forced to reroute to Malaysia.

And hundreds of villagers have had to suspend fishing off the coast of Belawan and neighboring regencies due to the thick smoke which has severely limited visibility.

Local environmental activists, fishermen and legal experts lashed out at Malaysia on Monday over the haze and threatened it with a class-action lawsuit to demand unspecified compensation for Indonesian victims.

Ihya Hulumuddin, a deputy secretary of North Sumatra's branch of the Association of All-Indonesian Fishermen, said it was considering mobilizing thousands of fishermen to gather at the Malaysian consul's office in Medan in protest.

However, Polin stopped short of joining in threats to file legal action. He instead proposed a bilateral forum to discuss long-term measures to fight the fires.

"The forum is needed to avoid blaming each other if further forest fires take place again the future," he added.

Meanwhile Governor Rizal said he had discussed the problem with the Indonesian foreign minister and environment minister but declined to give further details.