My Negro Amigo Bites Back #4 - Smoked!

The haze is back, with a vengence! In Singapore, the PSI* reading hit and unhealthy 150 at 2100hrs on the 7th October 2006. Toxic haze shrouds our city. In response, My Negro Amigo(MNA) will issue an astute comment.

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Here are some recent excerpts of newspaper articles, presented as a prelude to what MNA has to comment in a point/counter-point fashion. Portions of these excerpts will be highlighted in red to draw attention to its absurdity and audaciousness.

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"President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono yesterday apologised to Singapore and Malaysia for the haze caused by land-clearing fires in Indonesia. Speaking to reporters soon after a meeting with his officials, Dr Yudhoyono said "On behalf of the Indonesian government, I have to apologize to the neighbouring countries for this incident, even though clearly this is not an intentional (act) by Indonesia. Clearly this is not a problem we intend to inflict on our neighbours, and we are continuously trying to tackle it and prevent it in future." The apology came amid frustraion and rising anger in the region over the problem. ... ..."

- [ The Straits Times , 'Yudhoyono says sorry to S'pore, Malaysia for haze', 12 October 2006, Page 1]

• He is so incredibly insincere and childish. So Indonesia's president does not WANT to apologize but he felt compelled to? Why, because of the surmounting frustration and rising anger in the region that is suffering because of his incompetent government? What's worse, after giving the insincere apology, he added an excuse which turned out to also be a lie. It is almost like a parent forcing a child to say sorry, afterwhich, the child does so obediently, but also grudgingly and reluctantly.
• And what is this "continuously trying to tackle..." bullshit? This problem did not start this year, it did not start last year and it certainly did not start the year before that, it started more than NINE years ago. So if what he said was true, then that proves that Indonesia's current and previous government is inadequte/unwilling to tackle this issue. Come on, it has been more than nine years, we have be tolerant for more than nine years, surely if there is a problem with resources or infrastructure or whatever it is Indonesia's government has got a problem with, nine years is more than enough to rectify this problem. Again, if nine years isn't enough, seriously, how does this reflect on Indonesia's leadership?
• Furthermore, President Yudhoyono is once again telling a half-truth. All these forest fires that is causing all this toxic haze to spread in this region is INTENTIONAL. He claims it isn't. But we are not uneducated fools. Take a look at the 3rd articles below. Indonesia's farmers are DELIBERATELY setting fire to the land to prepare it for planting crops. If this isn't intent then what is? Is he claiming ignorance?

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"Singaporeans and Malaysians who complain bout the haze caused by fires in Indonesia should be fair, said Indonesia's Forestry Minister. They ought to reflect on how they have never thanked their neighbour for the oxygen produced by its forest, he said. Describing the complains as "natural", Mr M.S. Kaban was quoted in Tuesday's evening daily Sinar Harapan as saying: "Our Forest produce oxygen which makes the cool air for them, but they have never been grateful. Now there is a haze, they complain. There should be a balance." It was not the first such sentiment expressed by an Indonesian politician. In July, South Sumatra's regional paper Sriwijaya Post reported a legislator making identical remarks during a workign visit to the region responsible for a large number of hot spots. Commenting on pressure on Indonesia to ratify a regional anti-haze agreement, Mr Nazarudin Kiemas has said that the world owed Indonesia for the oxygen the country produces. ... ..."

- [ The Straits Times , 'Be grateful forest provide oxygen: Jakarta minister', 12 October 2006, Page 10]

• Where do I even begin? What sort of desperate nonsense is Indonesia's Forestry Minister spouting? What, we have to be grateful for the oxygen that they provide? Hellloooo... there are so many faults in his argument. Oxygen is for everyone living on this planet, provided by every single plant life that photosynthesizes. If Indonesia wants to be specific about the amount of oxygen others are ENTITLED to, can they enforce it? Can they say, "Do not breathe?" or "Tourists must pay a levy for breathing when they are on Indonesian soil?" Ludicrous isn't it?
• Fine, if I allow myself to be illogical for but a moment, and entertain the idea of having an 'balanced' view, like that of the minister, are we to say that for every unit of oxygen we get from Indonesia, we must endure that same amount of toxic pollutants Indonesia is producing?
• If you want an even more 'balanced' view, if we do continue to endure the haze and let Indonesia go about burning forrests, will they provide recompense for the BILLIONS of dollars the region had lost over these years because of the haze? This includes damages in agriculture production, health, transportation, tourism, and other economic endeavours. Is this line of argument balanced enough for Mr M.S. Kaban?

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"Farmer Donny Manik took the day off on Sunday. Too tired to go to church, he sat on his verandah, watching the antics of his two dogs. The day before, he had toiled on the land, piling up dead wood and leaves and setting the heap on fire. The somke added to the haze blanketing the Pelelewan region of Riau province. For the 26 year-old migrant from North Tapanuli in North Sumatra province, the slash-and-burn method is the quickest, cheapest way of clearing his 1ha plot. "I want to plant oil palm because it's more profitable than other crops," he tells me.When I asked if he knows about the havoc the smoke from fires here has created in MAlaysia and Singapore, he is taken aback. "Sorry if it happened," he says. "It must be the wind that blew the smoke all the way there." ... ... "

- [ The Straits Times , 'Blame the wind, say farmers as haze thinkens', 10 October 2006, Page 1]

• These fires are lit deliberately. I must say, I can emphatize, burning their land is all these farmers know how to do to survive. But why isn't the Indonesian government doing more to educate these people, to give them an alternative?
• Why aren't Indonesia's current laws enforced? Are all the agreements that Indonesia had made to its neighbouring countries - in regard to the haze issue - just lip service?
• Do the Indonesian government take us - the victims of the haze - for fools to accept that they are powerless because Indonesia is such a big country and they do not have enough resources?
• Do they think that we - like those Indonesian farmers - will just blame the wind?

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So wake up your bloody idea! Screw your own country if you want to but be more considerate of your neighbours. Your inadequacy to handle this issue is affecting the lives of millions of people. I pity the fool who's trying to blow smoke in our eyes with weak reasoning, for our eyes are already covered by the veritable veil of toxicity in the air. Do something about it!

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* PSI = Pollutants Standard Index

0 - 50 : Good

51 - 100 : Moderate

101 - 200 : Unhealthy

201 - 300 : Very Unhealthy

When the reading hits above 100, people with existing heart or respiratory problems should reduce physical exertion and being outdoors. The general population should avoid vigorous outdoor activities. More information on the PSI can be found here.