Hazy policies

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THE jetlag after a long-haul flight from Europe arriving in the morning is tough to remedy.

The only consolation is the stunning view of KL from the aircraft window, but I had forgotten about the haze. The A380 literally shuddered as it traversed the smoke and dust towards the runway, itself barely visible from the telecast from the tailfin camera.

For me, the haze is a boring story that has repeated itself annually ever since I began to read newspapers, though I distinctly remember Lat’s cartoon depicting a gigantic fan being installed on the KL Tower to blow the haze away.

That solution looks increasingly desirable, because for all the talks, nothing happens. It used to just be about Indonesia – our attribution of the haze to them overshadows every other cultural or economic dispute – but in recent years the routine is for Asean ministers to come together.

Still nothing changes, exposing Asean’s own polluted mechanisms. Recent surveys showed that far too few in Asean are aware of the enormous changes that the Asean Economic Community, due at the end of 2015, are supposed to bring – only recently have economic protectionists begun to express concern about the inevitable threats to their position.

So I’m guessing even fewer are aware of the 2002 Asean Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution, downloadable from Asean’s dedicated haze website.

The general obligations specified in this document are for countries to:

1. Co-operate in developing and implementing measures to prevent and monitor transboundary haze pollution as a result of land and/or forest fires which should be mitigated, and to control sources of fires, including by the identification of fires, development of monitoring, assessment and early warning systems, exchange of information and technology, and the provision of mutual assistance.

2. When the transboundary haze pollution originates from within their territories, respond promptly to a request for relevant information or consultations sought by a State or States that are or may be affected by such transboundary haze pollution, with a view to minimising the consequences of the transboundary haze pollution.

3. Take legislative, administrative and/or other measures to implement their obligations under this Agreement.

It goes on to elaborate the expectations and establishes an Asean Co-ordinating Centre for Transboundary Haze Pollution Control, but, as per the AseanWay, that is about it.

It might be wishful thinking to penalise governments for failing to take action, but there could be some other incentives, perhaps something akin to carbon emissions trading, though that would trigger prolonged debate about defining and quantifying the effects.

The only clear thing is that the knock-on effects are enormous. Our health suffers, affecting productivity, tourists are deterred, and transport becomes more dangerous: plane crashes have previously been directly attributed to the vastly reduced visibility.

Even education is stalled: in Muar schools have closed and the Malacca government asked schools to cease outdoor activities.

Interestingly the haze has not been politicised domestically to the same extent as the effects of another environmental occurrence: the freak storm in Penang last Thursday that has resulted in loss of life and damage to infrastructure.

Perhaps this is because one of the most visible events was the collapse of a lightning arrester pole and 50 tonnes of concrete from the Umno building onto Jalan Macalister, crushing several cars with people inside and causing a crater on the road.

Of course, the crucial question is whether this was primarily caused by the forces of nature or human negligence, as parties begin investigating who was responsible for approving and building the tower.

Earlier this month a ramp leading to the Second Penang Bridge collapsed, also leading to loss of life and the subsequent discovery that some of the workers were not registered.

In 2009 the roof of the Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Stadium collapsed: that too, became politicised again recently as its architect Raja Datuk Kamarul Bahrin Shah (though not responsible for the roof) joined PAS and was elected as the MP for Kuala Terengganu on 5 May. But for many Malaysians, the 1993 Highland Towers collapse remains the definitive reminder of the interplay between development and nature.

More recently I have been told many more accounts of dodgy sign-offs on major projects, and how incentives and the law are manipulated to encourage people to buy and live in homes that may just as easily collapse one day.

While Malaysians may be resigned to the fact that the haze will return for many years to come, it is clear that the process of building towers and housing developments needs to be made more transparent and tightened.

I suggest we draw inspiration from ancient Rome, where engineers were made to sleep under the bridges that they built.

Tunku ’Abidin Muhriz is president of IDEAS