Indonesia Sued Over Alleged Gross Negligence in Kalimantan Forest Fires

Four groups of plaintiffs, including representatives of the indigenous peoples' alliance AMAN and a local Catholic Youth organization, filed the suit in West Kalimantan last month, according to a Guardian report. The filing accuses the government of gross negligence in its response to fires that occur every year. President Prabowo Subianto and the Governor of West Kalimantan are among the 10 defendants named in the case.

The first hearing was held in Pontianak, West Kalimantan, on Wednesday, October 7, but no defendant attended, prompting the judge to postpone proceedings until October 21. Plaintiffs' lawyer Glorio Sanen told reporters he was saddened by the absences, while noting that the haze may have prevented the defendants from landing in Pontianak.

Yakobus Kumis, a plaintiff representing Dayak indigenous communities on Kalimantan, said he was disappointed that no government representative showed up. In his view, the absence teaches the public that breaking the law is acceptable. He also accused the government of ignoring warning signs before the fires broke out and called for the haze crisis to be declared a national disaster.

The plaintiffs are asking the government to carry out full restoration and rehabilitation of the affected areas, including covering the health costs of residents harmed by the smoke.

Forest fires in Indonesia are frequently started by burning land, a cheap method of clearing space for oil palm plantations, and the country is the world's largest producer of palm oil. The government has previously been criticized for not doing enough to stop land clearing by cutting and burning, though it has pledged tougher enforcement and deployed military personnel to extinguish fires.

This year's fires reached crisis level because of a particularly strong El Nino that created drier conditions than usual, and the resulting haze spread to Malaysia, Brunei, Singapore and the Philippines. The cross-border pollution has angered Indonesia's neighbors. Authorities in Malaysia's Johor state said schools there were closed on Thursday and Friday as air quality worsened.