Asean haze agreement must show its teeth

IT may have taken much longer than some would have liked, but Indonesia's Parliament finally voted on Tuesday to ratify the Asean Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution, 12 long years after Indonesia first signed the pact together with the other nine Asean member states, including Singapore.

The breakthrough could not have come at a better time, especially with the recent escalation of hot spots in Sumatra and Kalimantan. The haze also made its unwelcome return to Singapore this week as the National Environment Agency's Pollutant Standards Index reading briefly crossed into the unhealthy range on Monday morning due to increased hot-spot activity in Sumatra.

Indonesia has been the target of much criticism of late for its failure to ratify the Asean agreement, particularly last year when vast forest fires in Indonesia caused the worst pollution crisis in the region in a decade. Indonesia, the largest economy in South-east Asia, was the last Asean country to ratify the treaty because of fears among some of its parliamentarians that certain clauses in the agreement would infringe on the country's sovereignty.

Whether Indonesia's ratification will have any immediate impact on the recurrent haze is still questionable. But at the very least, Asean can now draw from the confidence that Indonesia is now obliged, by law, to strengthen its policies on forest fires and haze, actively participate in regional decision-making on the issue and dedicate more resources when and where necessary. Indonesian President-elect Joko Widodo has also vowed tough law enforcement to deal with the problem.

Approving the haze legislation is the right step forward for Indonesia to display its seriousness and commitment in preventing transboundary haze. But this is not something that Indonesia can handle on its own. All Asean countries must recognise that prevention and mitigation must be done together, and they have to work closely with one another to monitor the haze situation and respond adequately in the event of an emergency. On its part, Singapore in August passed a new Bill that gives the government powers to fine companies that cause or contribute to haze up to S$2 million, regardless of whether they have an office in Singapore or not.

As Singapore's Environment and Water Resources Ministry noted in a statement on Tuesday, there is an urgent need for effective action at the source, including deterrence, investigation and enforcement against errant companies responsible for causing the haze.

What's crucial now is to ensure that the Asean pact has enough teeth when it comes to enforcement. Critics have argued that the pact is vague and lacking in dispute-resolution mechanisms, among other areas. All the relevant parties must step up their engagement and efforts to ensure that this landmark agreement, despite being in force since 2002, can be truly effective in dealing with a problem that has plagued the region for decades.