Jakarta/Jambi/Palembang – As parts of Indonesia and neighboring countries continue to suffer through what is being called the worst haze since the massive forest fires of 1997, Malaysia's foreign minister urged regional cooperation to combat the annual problem.
Malaysia's Syed Hamid Albar said Southeast Asian nations had to work together to combat the recurring crisis, and formulate a plan of action rather than merely signing agreements that achieved little.
"Since we are suffering together, let's try and solve it together, in terms of action," he said as quoted by Agence France-Presse on Monday.
"It is one of those unfortunate things that we have not yet been able to translate (talk) into something meaningful. There must be a political position."
Indonesia is the only country among the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations that has not ratified the ASEAN Transboundary Haze Agreement, which the grouping approved in 2002.
Indonesia's State Minister for the Environment Rachmat Witular said the government was considering ratifying the agreement. That would pave the way for members of the regional grouping to exchange information and provide financial assistance to cope with the choking haze.
Rachmat warned that the haze blanketing parts of Sumatra, Kalimantan, Malaysia and Singapore could have a serious impact on the economy, public health and the environment.
He said recent tests by his office found particulate matter had reached far above 300 parts per million (ppm). Levels of between 51 and 100 ppm are considered tolerable.
The suffocating smoke has been blamed on farmers and companies using illegal slash-and-burn methods to clear land during the dry season.
However, the cooperative spirit urged by Malaysia's foreign minister failed to mask growing regional tensions brought on by the annual haze.
Malaysia's Health Minister Chua Soi Lek called on Indonesia to be "more proactive" in solving the problem, "because it not only causes resentment among our people, it also has economic implications", he said as reported by AFP.
Earlier, Singapore's Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong said he hoped Indonesia would next year "understand our concerns and do something about the haze".
In Indonesia, hundreds of passengers were stranded at Sultan Taha Syaifuddin airport in Jambi on Monday after flights were canceled because the haze reduced visibility to between 50 and 500 meters.
Several boats collided in the province's Batanghari River and at least one crew member was declared missing, as boat crews reported visibility of only 10 meters.
In Palembang, the power plant in Borang, which serves South Sumatra, failed to function, leading to alternating blackouts.
Winds influenced by typhoons in the Philippines have led the smog southward to Palembang, said Suyatim, the head of the local Geophysics and Meteorological Agency.
Meanwhile, authorities in Batam in Riau Islands province said they were preparing 60,000 masks in anticipation of the haze reaching the island, a 40-minute ferry ride from Singapore. Visibility in Batam reached only six kilometers Monday.