Four representatives of ASEAN’s human rights body are calling for the full and effective implementation of a 2002 regional treaty on transboundary haze, which is pushing Indonesia into a corner over its “contributions” to the worsening air quality in Southeast Asia.

Representatives of Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore and Thailand serving on the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) issued a joint statement calling for member states to recognize that transboundary haze is a long-term and regional issue, which must be taken seriously to prevent further harm.

"It is clear that the impact of the pollution is truly regional. For many years, the haze has affected air quality in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei Darussalam, Singapore and parts of Thailand and the Philippines. Last year, poor air quality in the Mekong subregion also affected Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam and Thailand," they said in the statement received on Monday.

The 2002 ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution (AATHP) was issued in response to severe land and forest fires in 1997 and 1998. It placed the responsibility to prevent and monitor transboundary haze pollution on concerted national mitigation efforts and intensive regional and international cooperation.

However, the illegal clearing of agricultural land by fire on Sumatra and in Kalimantan last month caused worsening air quality in Indonesia and its neighboring countries, which raised serious concerns about the effectiveness of the agreement and the possibility to achieve ASEAN’s vision of a haze-free region by 2020.

The fires in Indonesia are an annual problem, but they were worse this year since 2015, when they caused a serious environmental crisis that stoked fears about wildfire outbreaks worldwide exacerbating global warming.

Poor air quality affects the quality of life of individuals living in the ASEAN region and impinges upon the enjoyment of a range of human rights that are protected in the 2012 ASEAN Human Rights Declaration, including the right to life and the right to the highest attainable standard of health and an adequate standard of living, the AICHR representatives said.

"While we recognize ASEAN member states’ efforts to address the issue, it is crucial that stronger collaborative action is taken to mitigate the haze and prevent it from occurring again in the future," they said, underlining how ASEAN countries should "fully and effectively" implement the treaty.

The AICHR representatives did not single out Indonesia as having responsibility for the haze problem, but it was the last ASEAN country to ratify the agreement in 2014, having signed the pact along with other member states.

ASEAN and its member states are also being urged to revisit the Road Map on ASEAN Cooperation toward Transboundary Haze Pollution Control with Means of Implementation with its vision to be haze-free by 2020.

Malaysia and Singapore have repeatedly offered support to douse the fires, but Indonesia has been adamant about handling the problem on its own.

Indonesia's representative to AICHR, as well as senior officials from the Foreign Ministry as well as the Environment and Forestry Ministry were not immediately available for comment.

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