Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – Hundreds of Indonesian Military personnel have been dispatched to extinguish spot fires across southern Papua that have caused thick smoke and disrupted flights at Mosez Kilangin Airport over the last two weeks.
"Currently, around 300 military personnel have been deployed to put out fires in several areas, especially in Merauke and Mappi regencies," Kodam XVII/Cendrawasih commander Maj. Gen. Hinsa Siburian told thejakartapost.com on Monday. He was speaking on the sidelines of his visit to Kepi, the capital of Mappi regency, to monitor the handling of fires in the area.
"From the aircraft, we could clearly see spot fires that have spread across Mappi, Merauke and Kimaan Island. The spot fires are not only in one place but scattered across several areas, some close to villages," said Hinsa.
He said that Papuans burn land to make it more fertile. "It is the habit of local people to burn land during the dry season in the hope that new buds will grow. This habit has been passed down for generations but it is unfortunate that this year, the dry season is a bit longer so spot fires have quickly spread," said Hinsa.
Military personnel deployed to extinguish the fire are also tasked with sharing information with local communities about extinguishing fires and how to not burn land.
"The land they have burned is not meant for plantations. They burn land near their settlements or land they will use for hunting," said Hinsa.
"The burned land is in Mappi and Merauke but it has disrupted flights in Timika and affected other activities," he added.
Separately, the head of Timika's Transportation, Communications and Information Agency, John Rettob, said that as of Monday the Mosez Kilangin Airport in Timika was still unable to operate. "It is still closed," he said. The airport has not taken any aircraft arrivals since Thursday as smoke has reduced visibility to only 500 meters.
According to the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) Papua, the number of spot fires in Papua and West Papua has reached 219, comprising 169 spots in Papua and 50 in West Papua. (ebf)
Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/10/20/military-deployed-extinguish-fires-southern-papua.html