Indonesia to renew efforts to ratify ASEAN haze agreement

Indonesian government for the second time will push the House of Representatives to endorse the agreement of the Association of Southeast Asia Nations (ASEAN) on haze pollution, the Jakarta Post quoted a minister as saying on Friday.

Indonesia is now the only ASEAN member state that has not endorsed the agreement aimed at reducing forest fires and haze pollution. "From the government side, there has been an agreement to ratify it. However, it may take time because it depends on the process at the House," Environment Minister Gusti Muhammad Hatta told daily.

In 2008, all parties at the House refused to endorse the bill on trans-boundary fire haze, since the bill did not mention illegal logging issues.

The trans-boundary haze agreement was adopted in 2002 and came into effect one year later.

Source: Xinhua