Smoke haze response is overdue
The World Wide Fund for Nature describes the Indonesian forest fires that are sending a thick and deadly smoke haze over much of Southeast Asia as a planetary disaster. At the very least, the situation is a tragedy for many thousands of people in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore affected by dangerously high air pollution levels, and a matter of grave concern to Indonesia's neighbors.
The causes of the fires have been well canvassed; in relatively small part, they stem from the traditional slash-and- burn cultivation practiced by many thousands of Indonesian farmers. In addition, some fires have ignited naturally in the vast peat beds of Kalimantan, source of similarly disastrous fires in 1982 that burned for two years. The long dry season, exacerbated by effects of El Nino, has added to the problem.
But by far the overwhelming cause of the smoke haze is the burning of thousands of hectares of forest and scrub by logging interests and palm oil plantation companies. Their wholesale land-clearing operations lie at the heart of the huge pollution problem which confronts Indonesia.
Aside from a stringent clampdown on large-scale burnings by loggers and plantations, there is much that can be done to limit recurrence of the smoke haze. Through rural extension programs, small landowners should be encouraged to seek alternatives to slash-and-burn cultivation.
Indonesia's national firefighting services should be upgraded -- possibly with technical assistance from Australia, Japan and other interested parties -- and the use of satellites for early detection of natural forest fires should be integrated into firefighting procedures.
Most importantly, there needs to be a recognition by the Indonesian authorities that this is an environmental problem with consequences beyond its borders. With the first monsoon rains expected early next month, there may be a tendency to think nature will save the day. But in the long-term, complacency is not an environmentally sustainable response.
-- The Australian
;JP;HPR; ANPAk..r.. Otheropinion-Thailand-Politics Thailand faces up to lasting question JP/4/OTHER2
Thailand faces up to lasting question
A perennial question asked by Thais of visitors to their country has been: "How long do you think all this will last?"
"All this" has encompassed corruption, an unstable government and a spiraling economic crisis.
The symptoms of the Thai malaise also include large current- account deficits, a banking sector that has lent too much money to property developers, a currency linked more or less tightly to the U.S. dollar and, partly as a consequence, a tailing off of export growth last year when the dollar was strong.
Thai Prime Minister Chavalit Yongchaiyudh's alleged financial mismanagement was the subject last week of a no-confidence motion. He was accused of bankrupting the country and leaking information to political allies about the devaluation of the national currency, the baht.
The prime minister survived the vote. But his critics are still calling for a national nonpartisan government led by someone other than Chavalit. It is generally agreed that a major cabinet reshuffle is on the cards. And it is hoped this will inject more nonpartisan professionals into the cabinet.
Observers have pointed out that delaying this move might lead to a further plunge in public confidence in the administration at a time when it is presiding over the country's worst economic crisis in recent memory. It is also hoped that the new Thai constitution, which sailed through parliament on Saturday, will succeed in rooting out the influence of money in politics and create a more capable and stable government. Through deft political maneuvering, Chavalit succeeded in making passage of the constitution dependent on his being able to remain in office for another nine months.
Optimists still hope that the new charter will put the country on the right path to good governance. Thailand deserves to have some good news at last.
-- The Hong Kong Standard